Author's Note:
Another Saturday afternoon update. Hope you guys don't mind. Also, I have some good news to share...I got a new job! Again! I started the new year off writing basketball articles; now I'll be a video game list writer for ScreenRant. You guys know how much I like video games, so I thought that it was the right fit for me. As always, this fanfiction writing thing will remain a side hustle, and it will stay that way.
So, remember a few weeks back when I said that the main RWBY characters wouldn't make a reappearance? Well, I am happy to see that they will be appearing again, in this chapter! Speaking of which, this chapter will offer some closure on the Aerith Revival Project arc (the same thing will be applied to the next few chapters), while also marking the start of the newest arc which will be mostly centered around Link and Zelda's upcoming wedding. Funny story - I had originally planned on ending this story with Link and Zelda getting married, but I know that you guys wouldn't have waited that long. And neither would've I. Now, the guest reviews:
"Unrelated to the chapter, but I have a question. I know you're a wrestling fan if that Champion episode is to go by. So I have this important question to ask. Do you acknowledge Roman Reigns as the Head of the Table? As the Tribal Chief? As the WWE Universal Champion?"
I do, in fact - I also acknowledge him as the best heel in WWE, at least right now. I dig Roman's new gimmick; I feel like they've finally done right with his character. Another anonymous review:
"I'm lost...what happened again?"
To sum up the last chapter - Fox and Falco got lost in time, Sephiroth ruined Cloud's plan by going after Eggman, the Phantom Thieves changed Cloud's heart, and Uka had a pivotal role in saving the day. I think that covers all the important plot points. Up next is Cloudenstein:
"I think this will be a wild guess, but I think Cloud's title as the man of the mansion should be revoked. Because what I see from Cloud this past episodes did not show a good showing of what a "man of the mansion" should be. Maybe gift the position back to the man who actually deserves it. Link. So then, Link and Zelda can watch over the mansion as (future) husband and wife."
That is something I might entertain over the next few chapters. Who knows, I might even do a poll on who should be the man of the mansion - Link or Cloud. The prospect of Link and Zelda watching over the mansion as a married couple is way too big to pass up on, though. An NFL fan has another draft-related question for me:
"I want to ask another question relating to the draft. Out of the QBs from the 2021 draft class, who do you think will be the best QB and even won a Super Bowl? Trevor Lawrence, Zach Wilson, Trey Lance, Justin Fields, or Mac Jones? And do you think that Jones would start over Cam Newton, or Fields would start over Andy Dalton? Sorry for asking too much."
No, you're fine! I think Lawrence will be the best QB out of his draft class since he's the closest thing to Andrew Luck in my opinion. (As someone who comes from a family of mostly Clemson fans, I would know.) I can only see Jones and Fields starting if the QBs ahead of them show some struggles. Last up is BowserFan327:
"I have an idea for the next arc but it is big. My major question for this arc is this: Is Fire Emblem Heroes(It's a mobile game) cannon in this universe?"
I'd love to hear your idea for the next arc - even if I may not use it. As for your question, Heroes is...canon to this universe. I think...
Episode 282: DrugBust
It has been two weeks since Cloud went full psycho. The swordsman, in a desperate yet selfish attempt to end the Aerith Revival Project on a good note, demanded N. Tropy to take him to an alternate timeline and pluck an Aerith from there. N. Tropy warned against this...but Cloud didn't care. After Sephiroth chased Cloud down, Cloud suffered from what was believed to be a mental breakdown; Sephiroth happily admitted Cloud into a psych ward afterward, with Master Hand's approval.
To this day, Cloud was still at the institution, with Master Hand forbidding the swordsman from returning to the mansion until further notice. Furthermore, Master Hand also forbade letting anyone from the mansion visit Cloud. That meant Aerith, who was allowed to stay for two more weeks, was barred from seeing Cloud.
Aside from maybe an occasional visit from someone who lived outside of the mansion, Cloud was mostly a lonesome man, forced to reflect on his actions. Thanks to Master Hand bribing the psych ward, Cloud was asked to stay at the institution until Master Hand was comfortable letting him return.
"Sure you don't need anything, Mr. Strife?" a nurse asked Cloud, as she stopped by the swordsman's room for an annual daily check-up. Cloud mostly confined himself to his room, which some of the doctors and nurses found peculiar.
"No thanks, I'm good," replied Cloud; taking the swordsman's word for it, the nurse quietly left the room. Cloud immediately sighed after the nurse left.
Psychiatrist: Out of all the people from the Smash Mansion, Cloud was perhaps the last person I expected to be at the psych ward. But when we were told that Cloud had a mental breakdown after traveling to a different timeline or something, we knew that we had to admit Cloud at once. *pause* But not just because of the mental breakdown or anything. The whole timeline thing made Cloud look very delusional.
Once the nurse left, Cloud was suddenly greeted by a familiar face...or rather, hand. Master Hand, to be exact. The giant hand magically appeared in Cloud's room, making his grand appearance.
"Well aren't you a sight for sore eyes..." Cloud said to Master Hand, oddly happy to see the giant hand in person. It was quite a while since the swordsman had last seen him.
"Aw, I feel so honored that you said that about me!" gleamed Master Hand, as he almost wanted to hug Cloud and squeeze him real tight. "Especially coming from a guy like you."
"Okay, enough with the flattery...what do you want?" Cloud went from appreciating Master Hand's presence, to wanting the giant hand gone in a hurry.
"I just...wanted to see how you were doing. It's been what, two weeks since I last saw you?"
"Might've been a week and a half. You might've seen me outside, spying on you outside the window one night."
"That sounds...creepy, but I'll let it slide." Cloud sat up on the bed he was sitting in, as Master Hand drew closer. "I bet you're disappointed in me, huh?"
"Yes, I am...I am very, very disappointed in you, Cloud. What were you thinking, going to some different timeline to find yourself an Aerith?"
"I just...got in over my head, I guess. I allowed my own selfishness to get the better of me. And it seems that I've lost everyone's trust..."
"Well, yes - Link and Zelda have been disappointed with you, as of late. And Lloyd is disappointed as well. But why would he care so much?"
"Because I stole money from him...and Pit." This was the first time Cloud made this confession to anyone other than Pit, as Master Hand gasped. "The money they raised from delivering food, I kinda stole it for my own purposes..."
"Stealing from two innocent young men?! I know they both probably deserved it, but that is very unlike you, Cloud."
"Yeah, I was the one who got them into the whole food delivery business. I gave that money to E. Gadd, so Eggman could build me a machine..."
"You mean the machine that was outside Mario's house?" Cloud perked up, wondering when and how Master Hand saw the machine. "That bad boy was completely totaled! Looked like our old grill, after Samus burnt it on Memorial Day. Still think she did it on purpose."
"It was all Sephiroth's doing..." Cloud muttered under his breath, desiring to know how long Sephiroth knew about the Aerith Revival Project - and how much. "...so I guess you just want to hang out with me, Master Hand."
"Right you are, my spiky-haired friend!" Master Hand looked around for a chair to sit in, only to realize that it was physically impossible for him. "Just going to give you some company, which I deprived you of for the past few weeks."
"It was nice getting away from the others, so I didn't mind." Cloud had a few issues with Master Hand being his only company, but the swordsman had to take whatever he could get. "Anything I missed while I was away?"
"One minor change...I've asked Link to take your place as the man of the mansion." Link, the man of the mansion? The Hylian must be stressed out without Cloud's guidance. "He's a fine temporary replacement."
"Link is taking my place? For now? And he's still planning out his wedding, too? Man, do I feel sorry for him..."
In emergencies, Master Hand instituted a succession line in case anything happened to Cloud. If Cloud wasn't around, then Link was the head honcho. If Link wasn't around...then the duties fell to Cortex. Lucario was next in line, and Meta Knight, Minato, Itsuki, and Chrom all followed thereafter. Master Hand basically used the search committee's order of elimination as a guide for the succession line.
Given all the shenanigans within the mansion, one might expect Link to be stressed out from being the man of the mansion. But in actuality, the Hylian was far from stressed out. He was taking it one day at a time, and solving any issue that arises. All while still planning for his wedding, on the side.
"Link!" Mr. Game and Watch called out to the Hylian as he made his way down the hallway to greet him. "Just got through cleaning the arcade room. Even got Lemmy unstuck from the Pac-Man arcade machine."
"Great work, Mr. GW! Here's some sour candy for your hard work," Link said to Mr. Game and Watch as he dug into his pocket and gave the 2-D man a bag of sour candy. Mr. Game and Watch graciously accepted the candy as if it was his last meal on earth.
"I probably can't eat stuff like this, but thanks so much, Link!" A satisfied Mr. Game and Watch walked away, as Link smiled proudly and went down the hallway. The Hylian would soon be stopped by Rex.
"Just got your custom-made tuxedo!" Rex said to Link as he held up a tuxedo, which had the Triforce insignia on it. Link was obviously in favor of the tuxedo.
"Awesome. Just hang it up in my closet. And don't forget to shine my shoes." Nodding his head, Rex retreated to Link's room to put the tuxedo away.
"How are you handling things?" Zelda asked Link, as she approached her fiance from behind. Finally, the princess's dream of Link being the man of the mansion was realized...even if it was only for a short period of time.
"I'm just...handling them. Everything's been pretty easy." Happy to hear that answer, Zelda smiled and kissed Link on the cheek.
"Keep up the good work, okay?" Zelda said her parting words to Link as she walked down the hallway. And Link had the biggest smile on his face.
Link: Feels great to be the man of the mansion for once. Sucks that it had to happen this way because of Cloud going in over his head, but hey, I'm not complaining. Even with the whole wedding planning, I'm still not that busy. Selfish as it may sound, I hope Master Hand makes the psych ward keep Cloud around forever...
Slippy: I gotta tell ya, Link is the absolute best! Just yesterday I told him that I brushed my teeth for the first time in like a year, and he said that he was very proud of me. He even gave me a giant lollipop...which is kinda counterintuitive since I don't have any teeth. And now that I really think about it...
Link continued his trek down the hallway when he passed by the cafe. The Hylian took a few steps back and went inside the cafe...which looked new and improved. Like it had a major upgrade of sorts. In fact, the cafe resembled Cafe Leblanc, at every square inch...who could have been responsible for the drastic change?
"Welcome to Cafe Leblanc, Link," Joker greeted the Hylian, positioned behind a counter while wearing his standard Cafe Leblanc uniform. Sitting on one of the stools near the counter was Sans.
"Wow, Joker...I really like what you have done to the place." Link looked around inside the newly-upgraded cafe, marveling at the aesthetics and the design and all that good jazz. "You guys did a great job!"
"Don't just thank us Phantom Thieves - thank the Carpenters as well. They really come through when we needed it."
"words can't espresso how much I love cafe leblanc," joked Sans, before taking a sip from his coffee. Link and Joker wanted to chide the skeleton for his pun, but neither one had the energy to do it. "this new cafe means a latte to me."
Joker: Turning the mansion's cafe into Cafe Leblanc was an idea I had in mind over a year after I built Mini Mementos. I took my idea to Master Hand, who told me to ask Cloud for permission...and Cloud shot my idea down, saying that it would take up "too much clutter and space". As if I needed any further confirmation that Cloud was far from a fun guy. But Link was on board, as I expected.
"Cafe Leblanc should remain intact after Cloud comes back home, right Link?" Joker asked Link, asking the Hylian a somewhat difficult question. Link was struggling to think of an answer. "I mean, It's not like we can just undo the work done..."
"I can't speak for Cloud, so..." replied Link, not yet comfortable with providing his answer. But Joker was looking for an answer from the Hylian right away. "...that being said, this cafe should stay as it is."
"Well, guess we won't know until Cloud sees the cafe for himself." Joker began cleaning the counter off with a white tablecloth. "He never wanted the cafe upgraded in the first place, so he'll just have to deal with it..."
"if cloud doesn't like cafe leblanc, it would be very depresso," joked Sans, leading to some frowns from both Link and Joker that caused the skeleton to let out a defeated sigh. "everyone is a critic..."
"I can have you banned from this cafe..." Joker threatened Sans, letting him know that he was in charge. Cloud might not take a strong liking to that.
After Peach's living room table was destroyed by Dr. Eggman, courtesy of Sephiroth, Mario took it upon himself to buy a new table for his adoring wife. Thanks to some money he got from the Carpenters (when they stopped by to fix the hole in Mario's roof), the plumber was able to afford a table that Peach would love. The delivery time took much longer than expected, but Mario had high hopes that the wait time only made the table much more special.
"Our new living room table has-a finally arrived..." Mario said to Peach, guiding his wife inside the house; he asked Peach to cover her eyes. "...deep-a down I just know you'll-a like it."
"Ooh, did Eggman buy it for us?" asked Peach, as Mario bit his tongue; Peach expected Eggman to afford a new table, given that he broke the old one. But if anything, Sephiroth should be the one doing all the affording.
"...no, but he might-a have chipped in. Here-a we go." Mario stopped Peach in place, having brought the princess close enough inside the living room. "Alright, you can open-a your eyes now."
"Okay! Let's see what you..." Peach uncovered her eyes and soon found herself greatly underwhelmed when she saw a small black-and-white living room table in front of her. "...got. Mario, is this the best you could do?"
"You don't like it? It's supposed-a to be minimalistic. Everyone is going for the minimalistic style these days, so why shouldn't we?" Peach, from the looks of it, didn't seem to dig the style.
"What do you mean by minimalistic? What are you, some kind of underground indie musician?" Peach shook her head in dismay, as she went back outside. "Stop wasting my time, Mario..."
"But Princess Peach, it fits-a the living room so well!" Mario chased Peach out to the front yard, where Peach was doing some gardening. Jennifer was outside playing in the grass, with Spyro and Hunter watching over her. "Wouldn't you think so?"
"If I had zero taste whatsoever, then I'd agree." Peach grabbed her gardening pail and went back to watering her flowers. "But unfortunately for you, I actually have some standards." Mario lowered his head, no longer a fan of the purchase he made.
"Told ya she wouldn't like it," Spyro called out to Mario, unsurprised that Peach wasn't a huge fan of the table. The purple dragon spent his sweet time trying to convince Mario.
Spyro: That ugly living room table that Mario bought online was somehow very expensive. Literally a thousand dollars! Tried telling Mario that it was a ripoff, but sometimes he struggles reading the fine print. Whoever that table's manufacturer is must enjoy stealing money from gullible people.
Mario would soon lift his head when he saw Dr. Wily coming towards his way. Wily was grinning from ear to ear and holding his hands behind his back as he made his presence known to Mario and the others.
"Sup doctor - why the big-a smile?" Mario asked Wily, whose mustache strangely moved as he smiled. It was a trick that the robot inventor dared not to teach to other mustached gentlemen. "Convinced Cloud to abstain-a from time travel forever?"
"No...but that is in my to-do list," replied Wily, expecting to speak with Cloud after the swordsman returned from the psych ward. "Right under 'ask Dr. Nefarious Tropy to invite me to the next camping retreat'. Without E. Gadd, of course."
"Seriously though, why are you here?" Peach asked Wily, as she stopped watering her flowers. "Your smile is starting to frighten Jennifer..." Contrary to what Peach thought, Jennifer was far from scared...the princess must be just seeing things.
"Well, while I was working on my alternate universe device, a sudden glitch happened...and I was visited by four ladies from a faraway universe. You might know them - anyone wants to guess who they are?"
"Oh no..." panicked Hunter, as he was starting to fear for the worst. Spyro saw the panic on Hunter's face and rolled his eyes at his cheetah friend.
"Just tell us who-a they are, I'm having a brain-a fart right now," Mario said to Wily, who smacked his forehead and ran his hand down his face. So much for playing the guessing game.
"Fine then, I'll just have to show you..." groaned Wily, before he turned around and cupped his hands as he shouted out the following: "Ruby! Weiss! Blake! Yang! Come and see your old friends!"
Hunter's deepest fears were realized, as Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang all showed up in Mario's front yard. While Hunter was panicking out of his mind, Mario and the others were delighted to see the RWBY gang.
"Oh, the RWBY gang, of course!" exclaimed Mario, smiling in sudden realization as his brainfart passed over. "Don't know why, but I was originally thinking about-a those space vixens I saw in a dream-a of mine. They were nice-a company."
"What space vixens?" Peach asked Mario out of concern, as Mario kept his lips pursed and looked away. Mario should've kept that one to himself.
"Hi Mario, hi Peach, hi Spyro and Hunter!" Ruby greeted the four as she waved to them, not even caring enough to greet Jennifer. That girl must secretly despise little children. "Guess who's back in town..."
"How's it going," Spyro said to the RWBY gang, before leaning in close to the shivering-in-fear Huter and whispering the following: "Please don't do anything weird around them..."
"YOU'LL NEVER TAKE OUR ROOM ALIVE!" Hunter vowed to the RWBY gang, shouting as he ran off to...wherever he was running off to. Ruby and the girls just stood there completely dumbfounded.
"I thought he was over the whole room situation..." Weiss whispered to Ruby, greatly befuddled by Hunter's nervous candor.
"You know how he is...super fickle," Ruby whispered back, not expecting to see Hunter again for the rest of the day - not that she would complain about it or anything.
Hunter: This feels like a setup. Dr. Wily must have a secret plan to get rid of me and Spyro forever. Why else would he bring Ruby and her friends back to Seattle? That makes those girls super complicit. No way am I buying that crappy "I was working on my machine until something happened" story. Maybe he caught wind of my own secret plan to move him out of the tower and to some retirement home. The fact that he potentially spied on me is enough reason to send him to where he belongs.
"Welcome back, ladies!" Mario said to the RWBY gang as he walked up to Ruby and Weiss, giving them both a hug. Ruby and Weiss were reluctant to hug Mario back but did it anyway just to be nice. When Mario approached Blake with open arms...
"Touch me and you're dead meat..." Blake threatened Mario as she glared down the plumber intensely. Obviously valuing his well-being, Mario moved on from Blake and hugged Yang.
"So, what have you been up to since the start of the new year?" Yang asked Mario as she flexed her fingers, hoping that Mario wouldn't go into too much detail. "Anything exciting?"
"I finally lost-a ten pounds," answered Mario, as Yang and the other girls inquisitively took a gander at Mario's body. "Why are you all looking at me like that?"
"You look the same to me," replied Ruby, unsure if Mario had stayed the same or added on a few extra pounds. It was pretty hard to tell "Are you sure that you actually lost weight?"
"You think I don't know my own-a body? Of course, I lost-a weight! And it was all thanks-a to adding some fish-a to my diet!"
"D-Did you just say...fish?" Blake perked up, rubbing her hands together; she was trying to keep her cool without breaking her demeanor. "What kind of fish are we talking about here?"
"Mostly raw fish. I wanted some fried-a fish, personally, but my doctor said-a that it has too much oil. He's not as smart-a as he thinks he is."
"I definitely think we should hang around with Mario and Peach while we're here," Blake discussed with her gang, dying to get her hands on some fish. Her cravings couldn't possibly be contained.
"I mean, we were likely to do that anyway," replied Weiss, before turning her attention to Wily. "How long until your device is fixed, Wily?" Weiss asked the robot inventor.
"Probably before eight o'clock," estimated Wily as he took a glance at his watch. "But I can purposely stall some time, just so you ladies could do some catching up..."
"That's fine with us," replied Ruby, perfectly content with the conditions provided. The girl looked around, seeing that someone was still missing. "Hunter isn't coming back, is he?"
Relieved to be at home with his family, and not stuck in the past or the slums of Midgar, Fox was relaxing on the outside patio of his home. The pilot was frying some steak kabobs on a small grill, while Krystal was busy breastfeeding Marcus. Oh, and Falco was there, too.
"You look very incensed, Falco," Krystal said to the avian pilot, who was sitting in a patio chair across from her. Falco was shaking his head in disappointment at Krystal, with his arms folded.
"Just that full of yourself, aren't you?" Falco asked Krystal in a very disapproving manner as if Krystal was his daughter and she had greatly disappointed him beyond comprehension. "Why is it that you get to breastfeed Marcus, but Fox can't?"
"...because I'm a woman?" Krystal eyed around the patio, believing that the answer should've been obvious for Falco. But apparently, it sadly wasn't.
"Yeah, sure, go with the whole 'I'm a woman' excuse." Falco threw his arms up in defeat, as he walked away from Krystal so he could facepalm at the vixen's perceived selfishness. Krystal looked towards Fox, hoping that her husband had heard most of the conversation.
"We've been through this conversation many times before," Fox said to Krystal, having already called it quits with educating Falco. "Nothing that I say can get through to him."
Fox: Falco wasn't that well-versed in basic biology, to begin with, but whatever knowledge he had gone out the window when he started acting delusional. The reason for his delusion? His desire to be a godfather, which was reignited after that whole time-travel snafu. Being stuck in time really made him appreciate things that he probably shouldn't.
Falco: Katt and I can't have kids to do our differing species, so being a godfather to Marcus is the only chance that I have at experiencing some kind of fatherhood. I still have nightmares to this day thinking about what a cat-bird baby would look like.
"Fox, Falco!" Hunter called out to the two pilots as he showed up at Fox's patio. The cheetah was out of breath as he came to a stop, almost on the verge of collapsing to the ground.
"Sheesh, Hunter, what happened to you?" Fox asked the cheetah, as Falco stopped facepalming and went over to see Hunter. "You look like you just ran a marathon backward!"
"Which we planned on doing a few years ago," Falco said on behalf of Fox and himself, expressing his desire to participate in the Seattle Marathon in 2019. "Those stupid officials told us to get lost...boring idiots."
"In case you were wondering, I was running away from Ruby Rose and the others," explained Hunter, as Fox and Falco both raised their eyebrows. "I meant to stop by your house, Fox, but I got sidetracked while running for my life."
"Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang? They're all back in town?" Fox asked Hunter, who nodded his head before looking behind him just to make sure no one from the RWBY gang had followed him. "Now that's what's up!"
"Maybe for you guys, but not for me..." Hunter leaned in close to Fox and Falco before as if he was about to whisper some top-secret government information to them. "...I think they want to kick me and Spyro out of Mario's house, so they can take our room."
"Okay...and have they express their desires to kick you out of the house?" Fox refused to help Hunter if he knew that his efforts would be for naught.
"Not yet, but I just know that they're gonna make their intentions public. Also, I have a hunch that Dr. Wily is leading them."
"Now why would Wily even..." At this point, Fox had heard enough from Hunter, thinking that the cheetah was acting more delusional than Falco. "...what would even be Wily's end goal?"
"To dispose of me and Spyro, just to ruin our secret plan of sending him to a retirement home. Bet you he's gonna force us back into the Dragon Realms."
"Do you mean your secret plan? Why you gotta throw Spyro into this?" Fox shook his head before turning to Falco...who was seriously thinking about the words that Hunter had said. "Falco, do you actually believe this man?"
"You know, the dude kinda has a point," inferred Falco, leading Fox to believe that the avian pilot had completely lost his mind. Going back in time must've really ruined him. "Why is it that Wily brought those four girls specifically?"
"Exactly!" exclaimed Hunter as he emphatically pointed at Falco; Fox felt like banging his head against a brick wall. "Wily literally could've brought someone from Sora and Aerith's universe...but Ruby Rose? That's awfully suspect."
"You can keep thinking that, but we're not gonna help you," Fox informed Hunter, as Falco was silently attempting to change the pilot's mind. "You can just go on with your crazy, delusional self, and leave us out of it."
"Alright, fine...have it your way." Having no choice but to fly solo, Hunter stormed off and walked away from Fox's patio. "Guess I'll just have to get rid of those four girls myself..."
"Hunter, wait up man!" Falco called out to the cheetah, who came to a stop. Falco caught up to Hunter, whispering in his ear: "I know of two boys who can get you where you wanna go..."
"Falco! Stop following up on Hunter's nonsense!" Fox shouted to Falco, willing to drag the avian pilot's butt back to the patio if the moment called for it.
"Link Patrol Unit. Best cops around." Falco patted Hunter on his shoulders, as he returned to the patio. Hunter now had the biggest smile on his face...
Pit was in a generally happy mood over the past few weeks. The angel, who for a moment felt bad for helping Cloud with his Aerith Revival Project, felt reinvigorated when Sonic asked him to help out with Ema Skye's plan. Not only that, but Pit came clean to Lloyd and told him about the reasoning behind starting the whole food delivery service thing - and it felt like some pressure was lifted off of the angel's shoulders.
Pit, along with Sonic and Crash, stopped by Ema's room to see how she was handling things with the replica. Ema asked the three to travel to Radiant Garden, and find a replica that she needed for her plan to be a grand success. Thankfully, Ansem the Wise and his aides came through, and it was time for Ema to do her thing.
"Oh, Ema! You're favorite hedgehog and bandicoot are here!" Sonic called out to the forensics expert as he knocked on her bedroom door - but not in a way that would make Ema feel annoyed.
"And your favorite angel, too!" added Pit, refusing to be left out of the mix. Soon the door opened, but it wasn't opened by Ema, or Coco, or Tails...instead, it was opened by Moira, whom Sonic gasped at the sight of.
"Ah, if it isn't my former errand boy," Moira smiled at Sonic, who took a few steps back and hid behind Crash for comfort. "You wanted to stop by and give me a glass of water - just for old time's sake?"
"You delivered glasses of water for a girly-looking man?" Pit asked Sonic, as an insulted Moira glared down the angel. At least Pit didn't outright state that Moira looked androgynous.
"You insolent child..." Moira took out her right hand, charging up some negative biotic energy. She had no need for her left hand in this instance. "...do you have any idea who you're speaking with?"
"Pit, I think you need to take back what you just said," Sonic advised the angel, looking out for his friend as he kept a close eye on the ticked off Moira. "This woman does NOT play around..."
"I believe you meant to say 'man,'" Pit tried to correct Sonic, doing nothing but make Moira even more furious with him. "Because no woman would ever want to rock a hideous ginger haircut like that!"
"Hey, guys!" Tails greeted Sonic and company, saving the day and Pit's livelihood as he stepped in between Moira and his friends. "Got some great news - Moira is helping us with the replica! Isn't that right, Moira?"
"Y-Yes, that is correct, Mr. Prower," confirmed Moira, now acting dignified as she discharged the biotic energy and held her hands behind her back. "I am overseeing Miss Ema Skye and her work."
Tails: I was the one who told Moira about Ema working on an Aerith replica. Moira was having some regret over the Aerith Revival Project after Cloud went over her head, so I told her about what Ema was doing. Really alleviated her mood.
"Crash! Why are you interfering in our business?" a certain evil genius asked the bandicoot, as he showed up with a glass of water. "You're the last distraction that we need..."
"Oh cool, is Cortex your errand boy?" Sonic asked Moira after he saw Cortex holding the glass of water in his hand. "Because if you ask me, he is way more qualified than..."
"Dr. Cortex is actually our project manager if you will," answered Moira, as Sonic and company refused to believe the geneticist. "He is more or less overseeing Ema in perfecting the replica."
"That's weird, I thought Ema wanted the replica to be a success. Why would she ask Cortex of all people to help her?" Sonic's words cut in deep into Cortex, who was feeling mightily hurt right now.
"He's not helping...he's just watching over stuff, mostly," replied Tails, as Sonic and Crash both let out sighs of relief. "If he was helping, then the margin of error would be..."
"Yes, yes, I know, the margin of error would be bigger than you expect it to be..." the self-deprecating Cortex finished Tails' sentence, sighing deeply as he looked down at the floor. "...I know how much you think of me."
"Actually, I was going to say that the margin of error would be lessened. Slightly." That made Cortex perk up, as his doubts over his self-worth faded away.
"Only slightly? I'll take it!" Given how much crap Cortex had to put up with, he'd take any positive feedback - even if it was a backhanded compliment.
"So Mr. Moira, can we get a sneak peek at the replica?" Pit asked the geneticist, still thinking of her as a man, as he rubbed his hands together.
"It's Miss Moira to you...and no, you won't be seeing the replica," answered Moira, much to the chagrin of Pit and the others. "We are almost finished, so we can't afford any last-minute distractions."
"But if you're almost finished, you should at least let us take a peek," Sonic tried to entice Moira, who was unfazed by the blue hedgehog's attempt. "One little preview won't hurt, would it?"
"If this is the game you wish to play..." Moira looked around the hallway, before shouting out the following. "...Sombra...show yourself!"
"You called?" asked Sombra, as the hacker made herself visible in the hallway. Sonic and company were startled, as they all jumped back.
"Hm, how convenient of you to be nearby. I need you to keep these three gentlemen away, for the time being." Moria brought Sombra's attention to Pit, Sonic, and Crash, as Sombra gave the trio judging looks.
"You want me to babysit these three tontos?" Sombra asked Moira as she pointed at the three. "What is this, some kind of suicide mission?"
"'Tontos' is Spanish for 'good-looking guys', right?" Pit whispered to Sonic and Crash, who both shrugged their shoulders - perhaps it was best that none of the three found out the meaning of the word.
"As I said, it will only be for the time being," Moira restated to Sombra, hoping that the hacker had enough patience to deal with Pit, Sonic, and Crash all at the same time. "Your guidance will be much appreciated."
"Moira, wait, let's talk this out..." Sombra said to the geneticist, who smirked as she and Tails went back inside Ema's room. Tails closed the door, as Sombra let out an exasperated groan.
"Hehehe...sucks to be you," Cortex taunted Sombra, who glared down the evil genius and knocked the glass of water out of his hand. "Dang it! That was my last glass of flavored water. Now I have to force myself to drink regular water...blegh!"
"Alright chicos, let's lay down some rules," Sombra said to Pit, Sonic, and Crash, as Cortex grumbled his way back to the kitchen. "You act on your best behavior, we'll have no problems. But if you start to annoy me...I'll just let Reaper handle the rest."
"Is he going to serenade us with maracas?" Pit asked Sombra, who just gave the angel a blank stare. "Shaking maracas to death metal music! Reaper must definitely rock out to death metal."
"That's...not even..." Sombra was about to say some more but held her tongue as she sighed. "...knew I should've skipped out on coming today."
For a couple of months, Cloud was the buddy cops' deputy sheriff. But as of late, Toon Link and Young Link were having doubts about whether or not Cloud should have his title revoked. The two Hylians were originally on the fence when Yusuke asked them to deliver Cloud his Calling Card, which they saw was a bad sign. Then Cloud had his brief episode..and that really had the duo thinking.
Until further notice, Link was the buddy cops' interim deputy sheriff while he was still the temporary man of the mansion. And even with Link taking over his deputy sheriff role (one that he usually forgot he had), the buddy cops were still doing their thing. Stopping crime...and eating doughnuts.
"Seriously? Luigi got these doughnuts for FREE?" Toon Link asked Caroline and Justine, who had brought a few boxes of doughnuts to the buddy cops' police station. Lord knows how many doughnuts purchased today...let alone in the month of May so far.
"Just for being vaccinated," replied Caroline, as the buddy cops had no choice but to help themselves with some doughnuts. No cop ever leaves a box of doughnuts unattended. "Daisy literally forced him to give the doughnuts away. A miracle that he's not fat yet!"
"Hold on, I hear someone knocking on the door," alerted Young Link, as he heard someone knocking. "Come in!" Entering the police station was Hunter, who likely got sidetracked. Again.
"Sweet, are those doughnuts?" exclaimed Hunter when he saw the boxes of doughnuts on the buddy cops' table. Toon Link and Young Link instinctively pulled out their bows, pointing their arrows at Hunter. "Chill out, chill out...totally making an observation."
"We'll take your word for it..." Young Link lowered his guard, and Toon Link would do the same. "...what is it that you want? Spit it out!"
"So you guys aren't gonna believe this, but...Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang are back. And I think they want to kick me and Spyro out of Mario's house!"
"You mean Crybaby, Spoiled Brat, Identity Crisis, and Breast Implants?" asked Toon Link, as he described Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang in that order. Hunter had told these names to the buddy cops and it stuck with them ever since.
"Yeah, those four. Dr. Wily brought them back, claiming that it was because of some 'mishap'. But I'm a smart guy, I know better."
"Do you have any proof that those girls are up to no good?" Justine asked Hunter, who struggled to think of anything; the cheetah had no evidence to speak of to prove his case.
"Not yet, but just...just trust me, bro!" The last three words Hunter had said struck a chord in Toon Link. The Hylian started shaking Young Link silly.
"H-He said it, Hutch, he said the three magic words!" Toon Link said to Young Link, who was in just as much disbelief as his partner-in-crime was.
"Then he must be telling the truth," responded Young Link, as he got Toon Link to stop shaking him and pushed the Hylian away. "No question about it!"
Toon Link: "Trust me, bro" are some of the best words to use when proving your case to someone, when you have little to no evidence. Second only to "my uncle works at Nintendo".
Young Link: That phrase doesn't have nearly as much effect if you claim that your uncle works at, say, Sony or Microsoft.
"Those girls sound like they're up to no good," said Toon Link, now certain that the RWBY gang were only brought to Seattle just to stir up some ruckus - and it was all because of Hunter saying some "three magic words".
"How do you know for sure?" asked Justine, as she and Caroline had a more innocent outlook on the RWBY gang. "You should speak with them, and see if they're innocent."
"No way Jose," Hunter said defiantly, folding his arms and looking the other way. "Speaking with those chicks will only accelerate their secret plan."
"A little communication wouldn't hurt," stated Young Link, as a nervous Hunter peeked at the Hylian with the corner of his eye. "We gotta see what those girls are really up to."
"Just hang out with those four for a bit," Toon Link suggested to Hunter, who was hesitant to even look at the four girls in their face. "We're gonna need you to be our reconnaissance man..."
Rex joined Link, Sans, and Cuphead at the cafe...erm, Cafe Leblanc, enjoying some of the coffee Joker made. The swordsman had heard stories about how Joker was quite the barista, but his expectations were pretty much blown away.
"Coffee tastes great," Rex said to Joker, complimenting the young man's coffee-making skills as he took a sip from his cup of coffee. "I'm not much of a coffee person myself, but this sure hits the spot!"
"oh, cafe leblanc, where have you bean all my life?" wondered Sans, who was enjoying Cafe Leblanc a little too much. He was hanging out in the new cafe all day long, since morning - even skipping breakfast.
"How many puns about coffee has he said so far today?" Rex asked Link and Joker, as Sans' coffee-based puns were starting to get on his nerves. "I'm starting to lose count!"
"He made five puns in just one minute before you showed up," Cuphead said to Rex, who found himself amazed by Sans' pun-making ability. And the skeleton made it look so casual. "You missed the brunt of it..."
"Link, where are you?" Zelda called out to her fiance, her voice echoing through the hallways as she searched for her man. "My maid of honor is finally here!"
"I'm in here in the cafe, Zelda," shouted Link, having an open mind about who the maid of honor was. The Hylian had a feeling that he knew who the maid of honor was. "Bring her on in!"
Soon Zelda entered Cafe Leblanc, and she came inside with a familiar face...Impa. The Sheikah was back, but to stop Calamity Ganon or some potential stalker. She was there to assist Zelda with planning out her wedding.
"Salutations, Link," Impa greeted the Hylian, who knew that Zelda handpicked Impa to be her maid of honor. It just made too much sense, at least from a somewhat historical standpoint.
"Howdy," responded Link as he gave Impa a simple wave. Impa looked around the cafe, at a loss of words of how..."new" it looked to her.
"Is this supposed to be the cafe?" the Sheikah asked, as Joker was smiling to himself and beaming with pride. "Did someone renovate it?"
"All done by yours truly," grinned Joker, as he brought Impa's attention to himself. Gotta act more humble than that, Joker. "Or I should say, mostly done by yours truly. My friends pitched in."
"yeah, those phantom thieves were brewing up some excitement," joked Sans, as Joker pinched the crown of his nose in response to the skeleton's pun. Impa took notice of Sans and Cuphead, shaking her head distastefully.
"Oh great...it's the unfunny skeleton and the talking teacup," the Sheikah groaned, as Sans and Cuphead took their insults personally. "I forgot how strange this mansion has become...if it wasn't already."
Impa: Sans was beyond annoying last December, during the holiday season, but he reached his apex of annoyance on New Year's Eve. Almost every thirty minutes before the new year started, he cracked a new pun. "Happy Mew Year", a bottle of champagne calling his father "Pop"...and something to do with Dracula and a countdown. I fail to see how anyone of a sound mind wouldn't go crazy forcing themselves to listen to that skeleton.
"Hope that isn't your best man right there," Impa said to Link as she got a good look at Rex. Poor Rex felt as if Impa was lowkey insulting him.
"No, he's just my assistant - he's not cool enough to be my best man," affirmed Link, as Rex felt even more insulted and gave Link a shocked look.
"Not cool enough to be your best man?" Rex frowned at Link, ready to vouch for himself as he smiled and pointed his thumb at his chest. "I'll have you know that I'm one of the coolest dudes around in Alrest!"
"Not with that ugly attire on," mumbled Impa, with Rex's smile fading away as he looked down at his blue scavenger suit. "Do you at least have someone in mind for a best man, Link?"
"Originally I had Cloud in mind," replied Link, as Impa raised her eyebrows in intrigue. Impa was more than fine with that choice. "But then some things happened a few weeks ago, and..."
"What do you mean, some things happened? Did you and Cloud end your friendship?" The thought of Link and Cloud no longer being friends seemed unfathomable to Impa.
"Let's just say that Cloud did something selfish enough to make Link lose his trust," Zelda said to Impa - and her explanation did nothing but make the Sheikah even more intrigued. "They're still friends, though, just...at odds."
"You should ask Champion Link to be your best man," Cuphead suggested to Link, who surprisingly wasn't that down with the idea. "Not because he's a fellow hero incarnation from a different time period...or anything."
"I don't know, Champion Link isn't the responsible type," stated Link, as he was keeping it real about his Hyrulian buddy. "The poor guy still forgets to do his laundry on time. Can't trust him with a wedding."
"Can I speak with you for a second, in private?" Impa asked Zelda, taking the princess's hand as she was ready to depart from Cafe Leblanc. "It has to do with...with Cloud.
"Why not just talk about it here?" asked Zelda, only for Impa to pull the princess out of the cafe. Zelda and Impa left Cafe Leblanc, with Link wondering why he had to be left out of the conversation.
"impa is one mug-nificent choice for maid of honor," said Sans, as he couldn't resist the urge to crack this pun. The skeleton giggled to himself before sipping his cup of coffee, as everyone in Cafe Leblanc was glaring at him.
Mustering up enough courage inside of him, Hunter returned to Mario's home, and inside he saw the RWBY gang in the dining room. Mario was preparing some fish, and Blake was salivating.
"This is the most emotion I've ever seen from Blake," Peach said to Spyro, as she observed how unnaturally happy Blake was. "We should've had fish more often the first time these girls were here."
"Sup ladies, great to have you back," Hunter said to the RWBY gang as he took a seat with them at the dining room table. "Seriously, just a, just a real pleasure to see you again."
"Well thanks, Hunter," Ruby thanked Hunter, able to see that the cheetah was acting a little too fake. She was seeing right through him.
"You're welcome. Missed you. Missed you as part of our family."
"Aw, that's sweet, we missed you guys too," smiled Weiss, slightly denser than Ruby was as she took every word from Hunter for granted.
"So did you guys go on a vacation, wherever you were? Did you have fun? I bet you had fun."
"We went to a beach, and it was amazing," replied Blake, reminiscing about the trip to the beach as she leaned back in her chair. "It really was, thanks for asking. Um, the beaches were pristine..."
"Nice beaches, pristine beaches?" Hunter wished to know every single detail, as he clasped his hands together.
"...and, yeah, the whole thing was incredibly cathartic. We truly deserved a vacation."
"We couldn't stay around much longer, it was hard to meet people we found," stated Ruby, as Blake was too busy thinking about the fish to even be part of the conversation.
"I bet, for you," responded Hunter, who was shifting uncomfortably as sweat was pouring down his face. His friendly facade was fading fast.
"Yeah, plus it was hot," added Weiss - that was one thing the princess didn't miss about going to the beach.
"Then why didn't you get an air-condition - should have gotten an air-conditioner for yourself."
"Are you all right, Hunter?" asked Spyro, who could tell that something was clearly wrong with his cheetah friend. Hunter couldn't do it anymore, as he got up from his seat.
"Yeah, I am. I am." Hunter pushed his chair in before frantically running out of Mario's house. Mario saw this and looked towards the RWBY gang, with Ruby shrugging her shoulders.
Hunter: I tried, I tried. I tried to talk to those girls and be all friendly but that is like trying to be friends with some evil...a bunch of evil snails. I feel like I'm dying inside. I feel like Neve Campbell in that movie I saw late at night, Scream II. She thinks she can go off to college and be happy and then, the murderer comes back and starts killing off all of her friends. I learned a lot of lessons from that movie, this is just one of them.
Sombra was tasked with keeping Pit, Sonic, and Crash away from the replica, so the hacker brought the three down to the dining room to keep them contained. The three were having some lunch - Sonic was chowing down on a chili dog, Crash was treating himself with a wumpa fruit salad, and Pit was devouring some malasadas.
"They're of Hispanic origin, just like you, so you might like them," Pit said to Sombra as he offered the hacker a few malasadas. Sombra stared at the malasadas curiously, before selecting one.
"Malasadas are of European origin, but I can see where your train of thinking comes from," Sombra informed Pit; she took a bite from the malasada as her eyes widened with delight. "Hmm. No mala!"
"But is Portugal not a Hispanic country? I mean, it's next to Spain for crying out loud!" A strong argument could be made, but sadly Pit was wrong.
"Guys, we have another mission for you!" Coco alerted Pit and company as she ran to the dining room. "We're gonna need you guys to go back to Radiant Garden, and..."
"I think you meant Hollow Bastion - since that was the castle where the replica was at," Pit corrected Coco, who gave the angel an angry frown. Pit backed down real quick. "Uh, what were you saying?"
"You got the replica from some scientists there, right? We need you to bring one of 'em, just so they can inspect the replica for any kinks. Should be no problem."
"Do I have to go with them?" Sombra asked Coco; hearing the unhappiness in Sombra's voice, Coco begrudgingly nodded her head. "Por queue...?"
"It shouldn't take that long, it's just one small trip. Getting one of the scientists to leave Radiant Garden might be the hard part."
Disgruntled with how his conversation turned out, Hunter retreated to the mansion, where he spoke with the buddy cops in the foyer. The cheetah was discussing with Toon Link and Young about ways of potentially removing the RWBY gang from the premises.
"Offenses heinous enough for being removed from mansion grounds include extreme violence and sexual harassment," explained Toon Link, reading out of a mansion handbook that he found in Master Hand's room. Apparently, the rules in the handbook were extended to the neighboring homes.
"That's it, that's it, perfect!" exclaimed Hunter, clapping his hands together when Toon Link brought up sexual harassment. "We will get them to hit on somebody, simultaneously, and then we will catch them in the act."
"I love catching people in the act," stated Young Link, and it was understandable for him to think that way since he was a buddy cop. "That's why I always whip open doors."
"Alright, let's get this started!" So the buddy cops got started, as they took off their police uniforms. Something that Hunter did not have in mind. "What are you doing?"
"Hutch and I are going to be the bait," explained Toon Link, as he and Young Link took off their police jackets and wrapped them around their waists. "Women find us desirable. Men, too. We don't discriminate."
"Oh, it's a good day too - we're both wearing our white shirts," added Young Link, as he proudly puffed his chest out. "We still have that alluring young boy charm."
"You guys shouldn't be the bait," stated Hunter, worried that the buddy cops might get themselves in trouble. "For one thing, Ruby and those girls probably aren't into little boys. And if somebody were to be bait it would be someone handsome and attractive. Like me."
"Women find us desirable."
"Yes, sure they do, Young Link..."
Dr. Wily was in the basement of the tower, working on his device so the RWBY gang could head back home when they were ready. During his tireless work, the robot inventor was visited by Pit, Sonic, Crash, and Sombra. Pit had told Wily that he and the others had to go to Radiant Garden.
"Just so you know, this device is still going through some kinks," explained Wily, as Sombra expressed her tiredness and boredom by yawning. "It might only handle two or three trips."
"Two might be all we need," said Sonic, while Wily was putting in the coordinates on his device. "Luckily, we already have in mind who we're looking for."
Pit: We promised Ansem the Wise that Aerith would be back in Radiant Garden, in some capacity, but it's been two weeks...whoops. Sure hope that guy likes rainchecks.
"Is this going to be quick?" Sombra asked Pit and company, as Wily opened up the portal - while having his fingers crossed that the device wouldn't act up while everyone was in Radiant Garden.
"You can bet your Hispanic doughnut holes they are!" exclaimed Pit, willing to die on the hill that the malasadas were of Hispanic origin - and that Portugal was a Hispanic country. "Let's go, everyone!"
"Be careful, everyone!" Wily advised Pit and the others, as they went through the portal en route to Radiant Garden. "Don't know how long this bad boy will hold up..."
Impa was speaking with Zelda privately in the hallway, asking the princess all sorts of questions about Cloud. Zelda was telling Impa the information she gained from Yu, and then some.
"Cloud wanted a time machine built in the basement?" asked Impa, who wondered how the Rift Generator was even built without Master Hand knowing much about its existence. "And this was part of his plan to have Aerith revived?"
"Spoke about it with Dr. N. Tropy," said Zelda - the princess had received two coupons to Dingo's Diner from Dingodile during the exchange. "He didn't like how selfish Cloud had become, and so he asked for his time machine to be taken apart."
"My goodness...I would've never expected such behavior from him. So what's going to happen until Cloud returns?"
"Link is filling in for him as the man of the mansion. I kind of expect him to hold the post until Cloud gains everyone's trust back."
"Ah, sweet Impa...my crown jewel has returned," said a certain craftsman, as Zelda and Impa were startled to see Steve peeking around the corner. Steve walked over to Impa, who took a few steps back.
"Get back, you cretin..." Impa said to Steve, who ignored the Sheikah's command as he drew closer. Zelda would intervene, but she was too amused by the exchange to take action.
"You may have turned me down on Christmas Eve, but you will be mine." Steve made this vow to Impa, as he had the Sheikah creeped out. "You will be mine, mark my words."
Steve: Impa is a very fine specimen - the perfect combination of beauty, grace, and raw strength. Such a mix of positive traits makes her irresistible for any male she stands in the presence of. Fortunately for me, I happen to be one of those males.
"Yo, Impa!" Hunter called out to the Sheikah, as he came down the hallway. Impa groaned mightily - yet another familiar face that she did not wish to see. "What's crack-a-lackin', Sheikah Chica? Hehe, see what I did there?"
"Please go away..." Impa pleaded to Hunter; she shuddered to imagine how Mario would react if he saw the Sheikah again.
"What do you want, Hunter?" asked Zelda, who didn't resent the cheetah's presence nearly as much as Impa did. "We were in the middle of a conversation."
"Just wanted to talk with my man, Steve," replied Hunter as he wrapped his arm around Steve, who just stood there motionless. Hunter took out a note from his imaginary pocket. "Steve, what I would like you to do is take this folded note, and deliver it to Ruby and her gang. I just want you to react to whatever this note elicits. Do not read it beforehand. Can you do that for me?"
"Let me see that note..." Zelda said to Hunter as she snatched the note out of the cheetah's hand, before reading it out loud. "'Please hug and kiss me, no matter how hard I struggle. I'm too shy to tell you that I love you.'"
"You weren't supposed to read it yourself..." But Zelda didn't care, as she took the note and ripped it in half.
Master Hand had planned on heading back to the mansion, but he lingered around with Cloud at the psych ward, giving the swordsman some company that he felt was sorely needed. Master Hand and Cloud were surprisingly having some good conversation, getting along with as not a single visitor stopped by. Until...
"Dang it, is that a stupid nurse?" grumbled Master Hand when he heard some knocking on the door. He and Cloud were just having a great (albeit one-sided) conversation about how obsolete reclining chairs were. "Go away nurse, we're busy!"
"I'm not a nurse..." a gravelly, deep voice said behind the door, one that confused Master Hand yet one that Cloud knew too well. Kicking the door down was Reaper, and entering the room with him was Doomfist.
"I'm not a nurse either - just wanted to make that known," stated Doomfist, only speaking just so Master Hand and Cloud could acknowledge his presence.
Doomfist: Reaper has to play plus-one to Sombra and Moira. And I have to play plus-one to Reaper. Does that make me a plus-one...plus?
"Oh, it's you again..." Cloud said to Reaper, slightly fearing what the mercenary wished to tell him. Reaper sat in a chair across from Cloud, looking at the swordsman like a disappointed father.
"I just knew it...you were gonna do something stupid and reckless," Reaper shook his head at Cloud, knowing that he left out a few more adjectives. "Hate to say it, Cloud, but you goofed up big time."
"Is that it? You wanted to come to this psych ward, just to tell me how disappointed you are? Was that really worth the trip?"
"He's not the only one..." stated Doomfist, who was standing at the door; the Nigerian cyborg stepped to the side, revealing Lloyd Irving as the swordsman came inside the room. "...look who we saw outside the entrance."
"Lloyd! What gives?" boomed Master Hand, not appreciating Lloyd for breaking one of his rules. "I said specifically that no one from the mansion is allowed to visit the psych ward!"
"Hi, Cloud..." greeted Lloyd in a disappointed tone, ignoring Master Hand as he stood at the foot of Cloud's bed. One look at Lloyd's face told Cloud everything that the swordsman felt about him.
"Look, Lloyd, if it's about the money, I can explain..." Cloud didn't know where to start - he wanted to make his amends, but not at the risk of saving face.
"No, you don't have to say a word. I've heard it all, straight from the horse's mouth. Pit's mouth, I mean. Not that he's a horse or anything..."
"Out with it, Irving!" shouted Master Hand, who wished that some better company from the mansion had shown up instead of Lloyd. "Say what you want to say, or leave!"
"I'm getting there, Master Hand, relax!" Lloyd shouted back at the giant hand, before sighing as he organized his words together. "To be honest, Cloud, this has more to do than just the money."
"It does?" asked Cloud, before having some suspicion about what Lloyd really wanted to talk about. "Oh, I get it...it has something to do with you starting up that food delivery service."
"Yeah, when I first pitched my idea to Pit, I felt like I could be making a huge impact. Like you know, in the community. But more than that, I wanted respect from my peers. And to be a more unique Irving than the one playing basketball right now."
"Sounds very hard to do, all things considered," remarked Reaper, who must know a great deal about this basketball-playing Irving.
"Then Pit told me a few weeks ago that the money we raised was meant for your Aerith project, or whatever. Even he didn't know what the money was for, initially! That left a sour taste in my mouth, it really did."
"I'm very sorry to hear that, Lloyd," Cloud apologized to the swordsman, feeling very apologetic as he was overridden with second doubts. "Should've known better than to make you and Pit do my bidding. Should've gotten the $10,000 myself..."
"And that's not all - Viridi's been losing it ever since Pit spilled the beans to her. She won't stop comparing you to Dr. Brio!"
"She's been comparing me to him...?" Cloud apparently treated the comparisons to Brio as a death knell to his reputation. "You're right, Reaper...maybe I really did goof up..."
"In more ways than one," responded Reaper, hoping that Cloud would fully understand and learn from the error of his ways. Cloud was fortunately no stranger to learning from his mistakes.
"But yeah, I just wanted to get those things off my chest," Lloyd said to Cloud, in a much better mood now that he told Cloud everything he wanted to say. "Might be a while before you gain some back from the others..."
"I'll tell you one thing, Lloyd...you've gotten my respect, kind of," Cloud confessed to the swordsman, whose eyes bulged out of their sockets from excitement. "I never expected you to run your delivery service so well with Pit...it changed my perspective of you."
"Y-You really mean that?" That was the most positive thing Cloud has ever said to Lloyd, and it had Lloyd over the moon. "Haha! My quest for gaining everyone's respect is still in full swing!"
"Good, good, now can you please leave?" Master Hand begged Lloyd, who calmed down in a hurry; Master Hand was getting some mad Team Rocket vibes from Lloyd, and he didn't like it.
"Uh, okay." Lloyd cleared his throat, before having some last words to say to Cloud. "Hope to see you back at the mansion, Cloud." And with that, Lloyd left the room...albeit in a better mood.
Master Hand: Cloud respects Lloyd now?! *laughs* What a bunch of malarky that is. Cloud must be saying nice things, just to make those beneath him feel better about themselves. He has learned a lot from me.
Hunter went back to Mario's home, and the buddy cops accompanied him there. Mario had already served the fish, and as expected, Blake was devouring the fish, not caring about saving some for her friends or the others.
"Blake, relax, I have more fish-a in the fridge!" Mario said to the Faunus, who was eating the fish as if it was her last meal on earth. "I've got plenty of more where-a that came from!"
"Yang, can I see your fish?" Hunter asked the blonde as he approached the dining room table - only to smack the fish out of Yang's hands. Peach gasped as the fish dropped to the floor. "Ooh. What's the matter? What's the matter? You scared?"
"Those are fighting words!" shouted Young Link, doing his best to instigate the situation...but so far, Yang wasn't that bothered.
"You mad? You mad at me?!" Hunter got up in Yang's grill, expecting the blonde to smack him on the face. Again, Yang did nothing.
"I hope he doesn't haul off and just hit you," said Toon Link, as he too was trying to stir up some trouble in the dining room.
"Do you want to do that? You want to hit me, you want to punch me?"
"Punch him, Yang!" encouraged Peach; the princess rarely condoned violence in her own home, but she believed that Hunter deserved a black eye for what he had done.
"I dare you to. Come on. Hit me with your best shot!" Hunter busted out some weird karate stance, as he karate kicked the air. "Hit me, you chicken!"
"Yeah, punch him!" Spyro encouraged Yang, as Hunter looked at the purple dragon as if he was being betrayed.
"Hey! Come on, Spyro, who's side are you on? You're supposed to be on my side!"
"Punch him as hard as you possibly can in the face," Toon Link said to Yang, wanting to see Hunter flying across the dining room and into the kitchen.
"Not, not as hard as you can, just a good, solid punch. Come on! Come on..."
"I'm not gonna waste my time and energy on you," Yang said to Hunter, standing her ground as she kept her hands to herself. "Why would I waste my strength on some dorky cheetah?"
"Give me a break..." Hunter muttered in frustration and defeat, as he retreated from the dining room. The buddy cops followed suit.
"You should have hit him, he was asking for it," Spyro told Yang, as Hunter and the buddy cops left Mario's house. "Once in a lifetime..."
Once she was done with the finishing touches, Ema brought her finished replica to a room where the replica could be kept away until it was time. Only those who worked on the replica were allowed to see it, such as Moira and Coco.
"Wow, she looks...very realistic!" marveled Aku, who was looking at the replica along with Coco. The floating mask was interested in seeing how the replica turned out. "Extremely life-like, even."
"Well, Aku, what were you expecting?" asked Coco, as Sombra took a peek inside the room. The fact that the hacker was back at the mansion could only mean one thing...
"Moira...we're back!" Sombra called out to the geneticist, grabbing her attention; Sombra came inside the room, along with Pit, Sonic, and Crash. A fourth person was with them...and that person was Ienzo.
"Stop...tugging on my sleeves!" Ienzo yelled at Pit and Crash, who immediately let go of the scientist's lab coat. Ienzo looked up and saw the replica before him, laying on a bed. "Is that...the replica?"
"Oh! Hi there!" Ema greeted Ienzo, running out of seemingly nowhere as she approached the scientist. "You must be one of the guys from Radiant Garden. What's your name?"
"My name? Uh, my name is Ienzo. And you must be...Ema Skye, correct? These friends of yours told me about you."
"We be spreading the good word around, yo," grinned Pit in a lousy attempt at being hip, as he clicked his fingers at Ema. Ema could only muster a gingerly, yet embarrassed smile.
Pit: Literally one of the first things we saw when we went inside the castle was Ansem, Ienzo, and Even all eating sea-salt ice cream. I'm telling you, that world has a secret cult...
"This is the replica..." Ienzo said as he followed Ema to the replica, believing that the forensics expert had done a bang-up job. "...you did some stupendous work on it, for sure. But what do you want me for?"
"Not much - just wanted a second opinion," replied Ema, hoping that she wouldn't waste too much of Ienzo's time. "If that's not too much trouble."
"Psst, Pit..." a certain goddess whispered to the angel, who looked outside the room and saw Viridi outside. Viridi beckoned to Pit, who joined his girlfriend outside the room.
"Hey, Viridi, you want to see the replica, too?" Pit asked the goddess of nature, who decided against her bitter judgment to ask what the angel what replica he was referring to. "That's too bad because Ema is very particular with..."
"Are you working for Ema now? She's not using you like how Cloud did, is she?" Viridi went into panic mode, ready to rip Ema's hair off her scalp if she had to.
"No, not even close! She has no ulterior motive. She's got some secrets, but she isn't really hiding much. Why are you so worried?"
"It's just that...I was worried about you being played again. First Brio, and then Cloud...didn't want you to fall into the same trap."
"I understand. I know you probably thought that I was acting foolish, and I wouldn't blame you. But the fact is...I was just trying to prove my worth."
"Prove your worth? Pit, you're a fighter in Smash, for crying out loud. You've already proven your worth as it is!"
"I know, I know, but I thought it wasn't enough. I just wanted to be helpful. That's why I fell into Cloud's trap."
"You didn't have to do any of that, Pit. You're pretty worthy in my eyes. That's good enough for me."
"Aw, you really mean that?" A smile from Viridi was a major boost to Pit's confidence. "Heh, if it's good enough for you...then it's good enough for me!"
"Promise not to let anyone else manipulate you again? Because I would hate to have this conversation again..."
"Nope! I've learned my lesson. Besides, the last thing I'd want is for Little Miss Cactus to start acting all prickly."
"So silly, Pit..." Viridi laughed at Pit's remake, and Pit would laugh along with the goddess. Another confidence booster right there.
"Corrin, I cannot thank you enough for risking your life and rescuing Cloud..." Moira said to Corrin, in the middle of the hallway, as she had her hands on the prince's shoulders. The geneticist must've sneaked out of the room unseen. "...you have truly redeemed yourself, in my eyes."
"I sure do appreciate it, Moira..." replied Corrin as he eyed around, wondering when Moira would let go. Pit saw Corrin in his plight and wanted to get the prince out of it.
"Miss O'Deorian! I thought you want to speak with that scientist guy from Radiant Garden!" the angel called out Moira, who looked over as she pulled her hands away from Corrin. "Right?"
"Right you are..." responded Moira, as she hustled her way to the room where the replica was kept. Corrin sighed in relief.
Hunter had reached his breaking point; nothing he could do was able to make the RWBY gang vamoose. The cheetah was pacing back and forth in the foyer, his frustrations growing, as the buddy cops looked on.
"You know what? Maybe I don't need you two anymore," Hunter said to Toon Link and Young Link after he stopped pacing around. "You haven't done anything helpful all day."
"There's still one thing we could do to get those girls removed..." suggested Toon Link, looking for a way to redeem himself and Young Link. Hunter gave an attentive ear. "...we frame them, for using drugs."
"It sounds illegal, but...everything they do on The Shield is illegal," added Young Link, who only had one thing in mind - putting the RWBY gang behind bars. Inside an actual jail.
"I've never framed a man before, have you?" asked Hunter; the idea of framing someone sure had a lot of high-risk, high-reward potential to it.
"Oh, we've framed animals before. I framed a raccoon for opening a Christmas present. And Starsky framed a bear for eating out of the garbage."
"It just seems awfully mean...but sometimes the ends justify the mean."
Impa fulfilled some duties today, as Zelda's maid of honor, and now she was ready to unwind after a busy afternoon. During her quest to find a place for solitude, the Sheikah came across the room where the replica was kept. She peeked inside and saw Ema and everyone else involved with the replica gathered around a bed.
"She's going to wake up at any given minute..." said an excited Cortex, as he twiddled his fingers together; Uka was floating next to the evil genius, wanting to see what the replica was all about.
"Shut up, Dr. Cortex, you're gonna jinx it," demanded Uka, before Coco angrily shushed at the floating mask for killing the mood. "What, he started it!"
"I think we should make some prop bets," Sonic discussed quietly with the others, strangely in a betting mood. "If she mentions Cloud in her first sentence, I get free dibs on Tails' pressure cooker."
"Not how prop bets work, Sonic," Tails informed the blue hedgehog, feeling confident - when in reality he was worried about sacrificing his pressure cooker. He was just too chicken to admit it.
"Everybody quiet, she's about to wake..." commanded Ienzo, as he saw the replica of Aerith slowly open her eyes. Very slowly, Aerith sat up, before stretching her arms and rubbing her eyes.
"Hmm..." the Aerith replica spoke before she fully opened her eyes...and saw everyone staring at her. "...why is everyone looking at me?"
"Yes! The replica is a success!" cheered Ema, easily the most excited person in the room. Her hard work had finally paid off. "This is so great..."
"What replica are you talking about, Ema?" the Aerith replica asked the forensics expert, before turning her head and spotting Ienzo. "And what in the world are you doing here, Ienzo?"
"My goodness - this replica turned out even better than I expected!" marveled Ema, as the Aerith replica found herself in a major state of confusion. "Truly a success, indeed."
Ema: That brain fluid sure came in handy! I suspected that it had some of Aerith's memories in it. Any heart, artificial or not, would be incomplete without memories. Something I've learned from that crazy scientist dude.
Ienzo: Technically, the replica of Aerith isn't that much of a replica...it's more of a real person. Becomes a real person once it acquires a heart. So it's the real deal. Now, will you please get that camera out of my face?!
"So, Aerith, are you ready to head back home?" Moira asked the flower girl replica, as he rubbed his hands together. And that's when all the confusion vanished.
"Oh, that's right! I'm supposed to go back home to Radiant Garden today," the Aerith replica remembered - while also remembering that she had some stuff to do. "Aw, but I haven't said goodbye yet to Cloud and everyone else."
"We can tell them goodbye on your behalf," Pit suggested to the Aerith replica, who wasn't soo keen on the idea as she furrowed her brow. "Or maybe you can say goodbye to a select few..."
"What even is this sorcery...?" Impa whispered to herself, fascinated by what her eyes had just seen. "An Aerith of replica...how?"
"Because Cloud chose to be selfish, that's how," someone standing behind Impa replied; Impa turned around and saw Sephiroth standing by, looking inside the room. "Ema Skye thankfully chose the more noble route."
"This must've been a response to Cloud's selfish attempt at necromancy. But I wonder, how would Cloud feel about this?"
"I see you are already aware of Cloud's actions...why don't you do me a favor?" Doing a favor for Sephiroth was like asking for trouble. "You are very close with Link and Zelda...tell them the news about the replica for me."
"They're in charge around here, they deserve to know." So Impa was about to leave, but not before Sephiroth grabbed her shoulder. The one-winged angel apparently had more to say.
"After you deliver the news to the Hylians, why don't you tell Aerith that her stay at the mansion will be...permanent?"
For the drug bust to be a success, Hunter first had to acquire some, well, drugs. Which was why he consulted who he believed was a trusted drug dealer...Toad.
"You got the shrooms?" Hunter asked Toad, as he spoke with the drug lord in his room. Except Toad wasn't a drug lord; episode 89 already confirmed it. "For the record, I'm not wearing a wire or anything..."
"I have this," replied Toad as he pulled out a bag of what appeared to be marijuana. How did Toad get his hands on that? Maybe he was a drug lord!
"How many pounds is that? Ah, screw it." With no time to waste, Hunter snatched the bag out of Toad's hand and ran out of the room. "Thanks, Toad!"
Terry had finished using the bathroom, as he was washing his hands in the bathroom sink. While the fighter was handling his business, he heard someone speaking behind the shower curtain. In a curious state of mind, hoping that some monster wasn't hiding in the shower, Terry pulled back the curtains...and saw Toon Link making a phone call.
"Yes, I repeat, drug dealers are inside Mario's household," Toon Link said into the phone, in a deep voice as Terry raised his eyebrows in bewilderment. "Their names are Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, and Yang Xiao Long. They recently arrived from a mysterious vacation at an undisclosed beach. I have risked a great deal to tell you this information. My name is Terry Bogard. Terrance Bernard, that's my name. See you soon."
"What are you up to, Toon Link?" Terry frowned at the Hylian with his hands on his hips; Toon Link shrieked at the sight of Terry, taking the phone with him as he scurried out of the bathroom.
Ienzo was done at the mansion, and the scientist was ready to head back home. Pit was responsible for bringing the Aerith replica to Radiant Garden, along with returning Ienzo. Wily kept the portal open in the basement.
"Still wonder if the other Nobodies called Ienzo 'Zexy,'" said Sonic, standing with Wily and Crash in the basement as this curious thought entered his mind. The blue hedgehog and Crash laughed childishly, as Wily gave them a concerned glance.
"I have returned!" announced Pit, as he came through the portal in one piece. The angel had his arms in the air like he just won the Boston Marathon. "Made it out alive before anyone could force me into their sea-salt ice cream cult."
"Yes, yes, that's good, Pit," Wily nodded his head as he was ready to turn his device off. He had to go back to working on it. "Now let me close this portal before I could..."
Before Wily could do anything, the alternate universe device started sputtering. Wily took a few steps back, watching as his device sputtered with sparks flying all over the place. A couple of seconds later and the device powered down, shutting off for good.
"I had nothing to do with this!" Pit expressed his innocence, as Wily let out an exasperated sigh.
Because he had plenty of fish leftover, Mario invited his neighbors Luigi, Pac-Man, Marth, and Olimar over for some fish. The four came at the right time, as Blake was already full. Oh, and Snake was there too.
"How nice-a of you to invite yourself, Snake..." Mario said to the former spy, while he kept a close eye on Hunter; the cheetah was chilling in the living room with Spyro, and he looked like he was up to no good.
"What can I say, this is a good source of protein," replied Snake, eating a piece of raw fish as the doorbell rang. Peach went to go answer the door and was surprised to see two police officers standing on her doorstep.
"Hi, we received a call?" the lead police officer said to Peach, with a hand on his holster to let the princess know that he meant business.
"I don't know anything about that," answered Peach as she turned around at Mario, who shrugged his shoulders in confusion.
"We were tipped off about a possible narcotics situation. Do you know anything about this?"
"Hello, officers, buddy cops Toon Link and Young Link here," Toon Link introduced himself and Young Link to the officers as the buddy cops showed up outside. "Listen, we may have inside information that someone is hiding drugs in this very household." The buddy cops led the police officers inside the house, as a nervous Snake looked on.
Snake: Just gonna play it cool and chill in this bathroom until the cops leave...kinda reminds me of that one time I was growing cocaine in the gardens.
"Those are real cops, real guns," Hunter said to Spyro as he pointed at the police officers, choosing to watch how everything unfold from the couch. "I wonder what's going on."
"Officers, we reveal to you...the perpetrators!" Young Link said to the police officers as he presented to them both Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang. "Search their things. Pat 'em down."
"Hey, what is this?" wondered Weiss, as the police officers stood the four girls up out of their chairs. They were just as confused as Mario, Peach, and Spyro were, while Hunter was acting all smug.
"Ma'am, can you step away from the table, please?" the second police officer commanded Ruby, wanting to inspect her first - but Ruby refused to budge, even for a law enforcer. "Ma'am, please step away from your desk..."
"Hey, what's going on?" frowned Ruby as the second police officer kept tugging on her arm. "You don't have your permission to do this."
"They don't need your permission, Ruby, they've got our permission," Toon Link stated to the girl, letting her know that he and Young Link were in charge.
"Hey, hey what are...why are you doing this?"
"Uh, you know what?" Mario said as he stepped in between the police officers, deciding that now was the right time to intervene. "I think that this...uh, this is probably a misunderstanding."
"Please don't search our stuff," Peach pleaded to the police officers, hoping that they would grant her humble request. "Mario and I have a reasonable right to privacy."
"This isn't right, we didn't do anything wrong!" Ruby cried out, as the second police officer was still trying to wrangle with her.
"Save your whining for the jury there, Rose," Young Link said to Ruby, as Hunter was beaming with pride. And retribution.
"Let's just cancel this, okay?" Mario suggested to the police officers, not wanting any of his guests to be arrested for crimes they did not commit.
"Ma'am, did you and your friends recently return from a trip to the beach?" the second police officer asked Ruby, as the panic was starting to settle in.
"That was...I went to the beach for a few months," Blake answered for Ruby, as the lead police officer was doing some snooping around in the kitchen. "What is going on?
"Check this out," the lead police officer said to his accomplice, who stopped wrangling with Ruby as he headed over to the kitchen. There, the police officers found the bag of marijuana that Hunter got from Toad.
"That is not ours," Yang informed the police officers, as one of them picked up the bag of marijuana. "We have never seen that before."
"And neither have-a I, or Princess Peach," stated Mario, as Hunter was starting to have some second doubts about what he had done.
"No, that's not...I don't know what that is," Hunter said to the police officers, trying to express his innocence as he ran into the kitchen. "And I...I bet those girls have nothing to do with it!"
"Do any of you have any weapons?" the lead police officer asked the RWBY gang, with Ruby glad that she hadn't brought her trusty scythe with her.
"I smell some basil," said the second police officer as he opened up the bag of marijuana, and smelled it. "Salad dressing, I think."
"Salad dressing? Are you sure it's salad dressing?"
"Yeah, it's, uh, a Caprese salad. There's a little bit of, uh, Mozerella right there."
"That's my salad," Hunter informed the police officers as he scooped up the bag of Caprese salad. The buddy cops were left stunned.
"So wait a minute, there are no drugs?" Toon Link asked the police officers, who inspected the bag of salad a second time.
"No, doesn't seem like it," the second police officer confirmed, as Young Link growled and punched a nearby kitchen cabinet. "We got a fake tip."
Toad: The bag I gave to Hunter was Caprese salad. He totally won't notice the difference. *snorts*
"Wait, officers, are you sure you don't want to interrogate them?" Young Link asked the police officers out of desperation, as the officers walked away. The buddy cops followed the officers out of Mario's house. "You have laws that protect you in any kind of interrogation. Why don't you use them?"
"You must feel pretty good about yourself right now," Hunter said to the RWBY gang as he returned to the dining room, holding his bag of Caprese salad.
"I didn't put Caprese-a salad in the kitchen," stated Mario, before turning his attention to Hunter. "Was it you who did it, Hunter?"
"Since when is it illegal to put Caprese salad...anywhere?"
"You know but the police could have been out there you know, catching real criminals instead of here searching my stuff," said Ruby, as Hunter found himself disappointed with the girl's answer.
"Are you kidding me? Are you kidding me, that's who you're worried about? You're...you're worried about the cop's time? Dah!" Soon Dr. Wily showed up at Mario's front door, exhausted and out of breath.
"Girls...I have some bad news," the robot inventor alerted the RWBY gang, his hand resting on the doorframe. "...though it might be objectively bad news."
"Bad news?" Weiss perked up, she and her friends fearing for the worst...whereas Hunter was fearing for the best.
"Pit, Sonic, and Crash went to an alternate universe to get someone. And after they came back from their return trip...my device went kablooey! So you ladies are stuck here, so to speak."
"Well, that's...actually great news!" Weiss and her friends were more than fine with staying around a while longer, while Hunter's face sank in record-breaking fashion. Hunter's disappointment was immeasurable, and his day was probably ruined.
Hunter: My nightmare came back in roaring fashion when those four girls showed up. Nice going, Dr. Wily. You might know about our plan to put you in the retirement home, but we'll see who gets the last laugh!
Spyro: Hunter, you're the one taking this personally for no reason. You made peace with the girls when they left - can't you just live with them for like a month or two?
Hunter: Alright, sure, but if we get booted out of the house, I better not hear you crying...
Peach: Steve is apparently...building a shrine outside, and he wants Impa to live in it. (Heard that she was Zelda's maid of honor - Zelda really knows how to pick 'em.) I'm going to ask Steve if this shrine has multiple rooms so that Ruby and her friends could stay with Impa. They should all get along just fine.
Impa: There's a shrine being built outside...and it's is dedicated to me?! I mean, I hope it's not built with blocks or anything but...why?
Master Hand remained with Cloud, sticking around even until the evening hours. Cloud thought that the giant hand was overstaying his welcome, but over time he didn't mind. The one thing that Cloud wished for, though, were some guests not named Master Hand.
"Mr. Strife! You have some visitors!" the nurse alerted Cloud as she opened the door, before opening the door wide as Aerith, Tifa, and Barret entered the room. Much to Master Hand's great dismay.
"You guys too?!" Master Hand boomed at Aerith and company, as Barret closed the door behind him. "What is it with you and Lloyd disobeying MY rules?"
"Shut up, Master Hand, you can't keep us from seeing our friend!" retorted Barret, who was taken back by the terrorist's outburst. Cloud watched as his friends gathered around him.
"Finally, some more fresh faces," remarked Cloud, who was getting tired of putting up with Master Hand. "I guess you guys know about...what I did..."
"Everyone knows what you did," said Tifa, trying not to make the swordsman feel more terrible about himself than he already did. "Word got out pretty quickly. What were you even thinking?"
"Yeah, man, trying to resurrect a dead woman?" frowned Barret, who couldn't help but shake his head in disappointment. "And then going to some alternate timeline to find an Aerith when your original plan lost its wheels?"
"Were you growing bored of me, Cloud?" Aerith asked the swordsman, leaning in close to him with a whimsical smile. "I'm not that replaceable, you know..."
"I know you guys are pretty disappointed in me, as I figured," stated Cloud, finding himself in a very apologetic mood again. "Let me just say that I'm sorry for what I did. Sorry for keeping everything a secret.
"Can't really keep a secret from us, your close friends," Tifa said to Cloud, able to sniff out the swordsman whenever he was acting sneaky. "But why did you do it in the first place, Cloud?"
"Two reasons: one, I was just trying to follow my heart. And two..." Cloud looked towards Aerith, as he was ready to provide his second reason. "...I was scared of losing you, Aerith."
"Really? Is it true?" asked Aerith, overjoyed to know that Cloud cared about her that much. But if so, then why did he do what he did?
"When you aren't around, I just felt...lonely, sort of. And I knew that you couldn't stick around forever." Cloud felt a tear coming on, his eyes getting watery, but the swordsman manned up very quickly. "So I brought you back, just to fill the lonely void - while I worked behind the scenes finding a permanent option. I was...in over my head."
"Then I guess you're going to be excited when I hear this..." Aerith looked to make sure that Cloud was comfortable, before announcing the following: "...I'm going to be staying at the mansion for good!"
"I mean, that sounds nice, but..." Once the words were fully registered in his mind, Cloud had a surprised look on his face. "...wait, what?"
"Turns out that Ema was working behind the scenes, just like you," Barret stated to Cloud, who was left wondering how Ema flew under his radar. "She made a perfect replica of Aerith, and had the replica take her place in Radiant Gardens! Or is it just Garden?
"Has the same memories as Aerith and everything!" added Tifa, amazed at how much of a brilliant mind Ema had. "Or at least according to Link, Zelda, and Impa. They were the ones who told us."
"Impa is Zelda's maid of honor, in case you're wondering," stated Aerith, easing Cloud's worries about the mansion potentially being in trouble.
Aerith: A shame that I couldn't meet this replica of me. Perhaps it was for the best if we didn't...the universe would explode or something!
"Hold on, who gave Link and Zelda the right to determine Aerith's residency?" questioned Master Hand, wanting to know what kind of authority that the Hylians had - when the answer was quite obvious.
"Um, Master Hand, they're pretty much in charge..." Tifa informed the giant hand, who decided to cool off a bit. "...the man and woman of the mansion. They can do whatever they want!"
"I...I knew that already. I just didn't expect those two to make such grand decisions. They grow up so fast..."
"Do you guys mind leaving? I want to be alone with Cloud," Aerith said to Barret and Tifa, who were both more than willing to fulfill the flower girl's request. "Guess you can stay, Master Hand." Master Hand grumbling, wishing for Aerith to leave.
"No kissing, you two!" Barret teased Cloud and Aerith, as he and Tifa made an advance to the door.
"Bye Cloud, hope you feel...better, or something," Tifa said to the swordsman before she and Barret left the room for good.
"Alright, Aerith, what is it that you want?" Cloud asked the flower girl, seeing the teasing smile on her face. "Out with it."
"I think you still owe me a dance," said Aerith, as Cloud suddenly recalled the exchange he had with Aerith back in episode 225. "A little mosey. You haven't forgotten, have you?"
"Uh, no I haven't. We'll do it when the right moment comes." Those were the same words that Aerith said, and it had Aerith smiling.
"Alright then." Aerith kissed Cloud on the cheek, catching the swordsman off-guard as she usually did. "Never keep a woman waiting!"
"Never keep a woman waiting...got it." The phrase reminded Cloud of his exchange with Krystal, also in episode 225 - as well as the exchange he had with the vixen when Fox was stuck in the past.
"Good. Can't wait until you come back home!" So Aerith left the room, as Cloud now had a very happy demeanor.
"Master Hand, this might be a weird question, but...do you think that I should pursue Aerith? Or go with Tifa? Aerith sure is driving a hard bargain..."
"I would say to follow your heart...but we all know how that turned out," replied Master Hand, as Cloud let out a slight chuckle. One that Master Hand was not used to. "I'd say, follow your...nose? No, Kelloggs stole that one..."
"Heh, that's alright, Master Hand. I still have some time left to figure things out."
And some time to give Aerith the dance she wanted. But only when the right moment comes...
Joker: Sephiroth told me about the Aerith replica that Ema and a few others crafted. I suspect that replica could be the Treasure...of course, it's something we Phantom Thieves can't sell, but it shows that some treasures are more invaluable than others.