Conversation was filling the walk to Nigel's Place for Aeris and Red XIII. They were both enjoying each other's company very much, until they had an unexpected confrontation.
"What's wrong wit' you, Aeris?" Barret approached the couple.
"There's nothing wrong with me." She was silently hoping this was not over what happened back at her house. 'He wouldn't have the audacity to discuss in front of Nanaki...would he?' she thought.
"You wanna $@%# a catdog! There's somethin' wrong wit' that! You could jus' go to the damn pet store and buy a cat and a dog to $@%#!" Barret was screaming the words right into Aeris's face.
"Leave Red out of this, Barret! It's none of your business who I decide to have a relationship with! He isn't just an animal. He's more human than most of us are." She became very defensive and stood in front of Red.
"Barret, if you do have a problem with this, I would prefer you discussed it with me." Red walked from behind Aeris and looked up at Barret with indignance in his eyes. "This has nothing to do with Aeris and everything to do with me."
"You and me, Red. Tomorrow mornin' at Seventh Heaven at eleven. An' don't you go doin' anythin' wit' Aeris before that, you hear me?!" Barret backed away and stomped off in the direction of Seventh Heaven.
"I knew they wouldn't exactly support this...but what Barret did with you right there..." Aeris slowly walked over to a bench and sat down. "How could he be so upset over it? You've always been true to all of us and AVALANCHE. I just don't understand this."
"They consider a relationship between us wrong morally. They see me as just another domesticated dog or cat like the ones the humanoid inhabitants keep as pets. You don't consider this beastialitity, do you? Do you feel this is wrong?" Red kept a short distance from Aeris. He knew that with what Barret had said, it might make her uncomfortable.
"I...I don't know. I myself am Cetra, technically not human, but I appear human. You don't appear human physically, but you are intelligent and have feelings. You don't behave like an animal at all...I just don't know, Nanaki. This is so different from any other case, so many variables involved. I don't know what it would be called, but I know I do feel something for you and I do want to find out what it is that I'm feeling." Aeris held back her tears. 'Things would be much simpler now if only Barret hadn't come,' she thought.
"I understand...do you still want to go down to Nigel's Place?" Red wondered how strong the opposition from the other members of AVALANCHE, the only ones he had ever called friends, would be. 'Is being with Aeris worth losing everyone else, Nanaki?' he asked himself.
"Yeah, it'll be good for both of us. You need to get out more and enjoy yourself. And I need to get my mind off of everything." She stood began walking towards Nigel's Place again, followed closely by Red.
They reached the crowded tavern and restaurant without further confrontation. When they entered, a young child screamed out in sheer terror, "Mommy, it's a monster! Get it away from me!"
Red looked around him for a beast or monster, but then realized that it was himself that the child thought was a monster. Much of the rest of Nigel's Place's customers seemed to feel the same. Aeris was soon lost in the crowd from him so Red simply left. He felt guilt over leaving her there alone. 'But I wasn't welcome. It's best that I left before they labelled her unnecessarily, too. I'm much better off sitting in a corner down in the basement at Seventh Heaven. The only reason she probably even thinks she has any feelings for me is because she's drunk. I'm almost certain she was drunk when we were at her house and everyone was outside of the window.'
Red ran all the way back to Seventh Heaven as fast as he could push himself to go. He wished that he hadn't told Aeris how he felt and that he was still admiring her from a distance. Things had been much simpler that way. When he arrived at Seventh Heaven, he went straight down to the basement and curled up in the corner. He felt empty inside, so alone it was almost like ice within his heart.
"Red?" Tifa called into the nearly pitch black basement. "I saw you come down here. You can't hide."
"I'm here," he eventually responded.
Tifa walked over to the corner she heard his voice from and said, "I know what Barret did, and he's sorry for saying those things he said. He was just upset after having a long talk with some people and finding out some things he didn't know before. Whatever happens, though, I support whatever decisions you and Aeris come to."
"What did Barret find out?"
"I'm really not supposed to go into this with you, but Cloud told Barret he was in love with Aeris. He's really hurting right now, and Barret couldn't stand seeing him like that. So he just let it all out on you...I'm hurting as much as you are right now, Red. But it will get better. Don't tell anyone this...I have been in love with Cloud since we were barely teenagers. And until tonight I thought he felt the same about me...but please don't tell anyone that."
"I won't...and I really hope that you are correct about everything getting better. I don't want to be the cause of the break up of our friendships..."
"Just get some sleep, Red. You'll feel better in the morning. By the way, where's Aeris?"
"After some customers at Nigel's Place expressed their opposition to me dining at the establishment, I left her there. I know I should have told her I was leaving, but she was lost in the crowd."
"I'll go down to Nigel's Place now to check on her. And please don't worry about all this. Good night, Red."
"Good night, Tifa. Thank you."
"Anytime." With that, Tifa headed to Nigel's Place to find Aeris.
Red spent an hour worrying about seeing Barret in the morning and Aeris's well-being. He had a feeling something catastrophic was going to happen very soon. Trying to cast it out of his mind, he fell into a restless sleep...
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"What's wrong wit' you, Aeris?" Barret approached the couple.
"There's nothing wrong with me." She was silently hoping this was not over what happened back at her house. 'He wouldn't have the audacity to discuss in front of Nanaki...would he?' she thought.
"You wanna $@%# a catdog! There's somethin' wrong wit' that! You could jus' go to the damn pet store and buy a cat and a dog to $@%#!" Barret was screaming the words right into Aeris's face.
"Leave Red out of this, Barret! It's none of your business who I decide to have a relationship with! He isn't just an animal. He's more human than most of us are." She became very defensive and stood in front of Red.
"Barret, if you do have a problem with this, I would prefer you discussed it with me." Red walked from behind Aeris and looked up at Barret with indignance in his eyes. "This has nothing to do with Aeris and everything to do with me."
"You and me, Red. Tomorrow mornin' at Seventh Heaven at eleven. An' don't you go doin' anythin' wit' Aeris before that, you hear me?!" Barret backed away and stomped off in the direction of Seventh Heaven.
"I knew they wouldn't exactly support this...but what Barret did with you right there..." Aeris slowly walked over to a bench and sat down. "How could he be so upset over it? You've always been true to all of us and AVALANCHE. I just don't understand this."
"They consider a relationship between us wrong morally. They see me as just another domesticated dog or cat like the ones the humanoid inhabitants keep as pets. You don't consider this beastialitity, do you? Do you feel this is wrong?" Red kept a short distance from Aeris. He knew that with what Barret had said, it might make her uncomfortable.
"I...I don't know. I myself am Cetra, technically not human, but I appear human. You don't appear human physically, but you are intelligent and have feelings. You don't behave like an animal at all...I just don't know, Nanaki. This is so different from any other case, so many variables involved. I don't know what it would be called, but I know I do feel something for you and I do want to find out what it is that I'm feeling." Aeris held back her tears. 'Things would be much simpler now if only Barret hadn't come,' she thought.
"I understand...do you still want to go down to Nigel's Place?" Red wondered how strong the opposition from the other members of AVALANCHE, the only ones he had ever called friends, would be. 'Is being with Aeris worth losing everyone else, Nanaki?' he asked himself.
"Yeah, it'll be good for both of us. You need to get out more and enjoy yourself. And I need to get my mind off of everything." She stood began walking towards Nigel's Place again, followed closely by Red.
They reached the crowded tavern and restaurant without further confrontation. When they entered, a young child screamed out in sheer terror, "Mommy, it's a monster! Get it away from me!"
Red looked around him for a beast or monster, but then realized that it was himself that the child thought was a monster. Much of the rest of Nigel's Place's customers seemed to feel the same. Aeris was soon lost in the crowd from him so Red simply left. He felt guilt over leaving her there alone. 'But I wasn't welcome. It's best that I left before they labelled her unnecessarily, too. I'm much better off sitting in a corner down in the basement at Seventh Heaven. The only reason she probably even thinks she has any feelings for me is because she's drunk. I'm almost certain she was drunk when we were at her house and everyone was outside of the window.'
Red ran all the way back to Seventh Heaven as fast as he could push himself to go. He wished that he hadn't told Aeris how he felt and that he was still admiring her from a distance. Things had been much simpler that way. When he arrived at Seventh Heaven, he went straight down to the basement and curled up in the corner. He felt empty inside, so alone it was almost like ice within his heart.
"Red?" Tifa called into the nearly pitch black basement. "I saw you come down here. You can't hide."
"I'm here," he eventually responded.
Tifa walked over to the corner she heard his voice from and said, "I know what Barret did, and he's sorry for saying those things he said. He was just upset after having a long talk with some people and finding out some things he didn't know before. Whatever happens, though, I support whatever decisions you and Aeris come to."
"What did Barret find out?"
"I'm really not supposed to go into this with you, but Cloud told Barret he was in love with Aeris. He's really hurting right now, and Barret couldn't stand seeing him like that. So he just let it all out on you...I'm hurting as much as you are right now, Red. But it will get better. Don't tell anyone this...I have been in love with Cloud since we were barely teenagers. And until tonight I thought he felt the same about me...but please don't tell anyone that."
"I won't...and I really hope that you are correct about everything getting better. I don't want to be the cause of the break up of our friendships..."
"Just get some sleep, Red. You'll feel better in the morning. By the way, where's Aeris?"
"After some customers at Nigel's Place expressed their opposition to me dining at the establishment, I left her there. I know I should have told her I was leaving, but she was lost in the crowd."
"I'll go down to Nigel's Place now to check on her. And please don't worry about all this. Good night, Red."
"Good night, Tifa. Thank you."
"Anytime." With that, Tifa headed to Nigel's Place to find Aeris.
Red spent an hour worrying about seeing Barret in the morning and Aeris's well-being. He had a feeling something catastrophic was going to happen very soon. Trying to cast it out of his mind, he fell into a restless sleep...
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