A/N: HOORAH! o_O Ty for the lovely reviews everyone, Unfortunately I still have no clue XD failed experiment, but nonetheless, I will end up writing another story. that uses HTML. Woohoo! WHIFFLE BATS TO EVERYONE _
. . .Note that Yuffie's little pieces are used, considering that *Yuffie* took Cloud out on the date at the Gold Saucer. Difficult? Yes. Possible? Also yes. ^_^ It's a really cute scene, and if you're willing to play through it, it's worth watching I think.
. . .uh. . .o_O It may seem like the couples are out of whack due to some scenes in this chappie--the Gold Saucer flashback, Rufus, etc. etc. Don't hate me because I'm trying to make it seem like other things are going on. . .XD
Disclaimer: Whiffle bats, etc. do not belong to Daisaku. Darnit X_x durr. song used is the english opening of Yu Yu Hakusho. I like it, It's spiffy.
---
Tifa's wine-colored eyes widened, the tip of the gun pressing into her forehead. She could practically *feel* the ring being imbedded into her forehead, but her fists clenched at her sides and tensed to prevent slight trembling on her part. Her brow knitted into a vicious frown, and with one swift motion of her wrist she hurled the gun upwards at her attacker's face. By the lack of splatting or something, it obviously didn't make contact, but it was enough for her to leap out of the way.
Her eyes adjusted to the darkness as the flame from her little spell dispersed, and her eyes glowed a little--either to aid with seeing in the dark, or from the slight Lifestream contact. . .but anyway, her eyes cut as she focused on her attacker.
"Rufus Shinra. What do you think you're doing?"
Rufus ran a hand through his blondish hair as he leaned on his shotgun with his left forearm, the other hand on his waist and bending forward. He smirked slightly, and maybe a little suggestively at Tifa, who returned the stare spitefully. Last time, Tifa thought he was killed by Diamond WEAPON's explosions. In fact, she was almost *positive* he had. But there he was, looking perfectly fine--though his white (or silvery) trenchcoat had slight streaks of tears of rips, and there seemed to be charred spots on his face and hands. In fact, there was a long streak of a scar running from his left eye to nearly the right side of his neck.
"Passing through." he answered smoothly, as if trying to assassinate a savior of the Planet was almost as simple as picking begonias from an open meadow. "There is no problem." he added, tilting back up and propping the gun on his shoulder.
"I'm sure there isn't." she replied calmly, walking calmly to Rydia and patting her on the neck, then, she whistled and walked off. ". . .Is there any particular reason you're following me, MISTER Shinra?"
Flowing in the crowd
In a faceless town
I need to feel the touch of a friend
"Not one." came the nonchalant reply, paired with a condescending look.
"So, to put it lightly, buzz off, Mister Shinra. I don't really enjoy having to care about a gun pointing to my head in my sleep." Tifa clambered onto the gold Chocobo, patting her lightly and holding a small Sylkis green in front of her face. She retracted it as she felt the eating motions emitting from Rydia, then began to allow it to trot off in some random, inane direction. She could travel the world for all she cared. The freedom was refreshing for once.
Unfortunately, Rufus, stalker anonymous, trotted after her on some black panther-type creature resembling Dark Nation. The vein in Tifa's forehead pulsated in irritation, and her head spun around.
"Did you hear me? Go away." she retorted, throwing her arms up in frustration. Rufus smirked and chuckled. //What kind of stalker freak IS this guy?!// she mouthed to herself, folding her arms and awaited an answer. If she was gonna get one, anyway. She just *knew* he was going to do something--be it stupid, or perverse, or murderous.
"I don't see a reason for me to stop. I also have no reason to cause you harm." he said calmly. "As you can see, the Shin-Ra company no longer focuses on the original family."
//. . .So basically what he's telling me--// "You're going to be following me, aren't you." It was more of a statement then a question, but she could practically feel Rufus nodding his head behind her. //Arrogant bastard.// "And just why?" Tifa inquired, body tilting backwards from on Rydia, her crimson eyes boring into Rufus's stale blue ones.
"I have nowhere to go."
Tifa blanched slightly, frowning. Similar dilemmas, yes: Tifa was alone with no one to go to, Rufus was alone with nowhere to go to. But fact stood that Tifa still held an intial grudge against the former president. One, he was an asshole that enjoyed pissing off people. Two, he was arrogant. Three, he was persistant. Oh yeah, and four: he was in ShinRa and attempted to suck out all the Mako from the Promised Land. And Tifa despised the idea of a person like this following her. Normally, she wouldn't've minded, if he hadn't tried to kill her about 15 minutes ago. . .
Tifa fought the urge to give a small, visible smile. Cid, Yuffie, and Barret must've rubbed off on her after all those times.
She sighed, her gentle side taking over, and simply trotted off into the distance, Rufus not far behind. //Besides, if he does anything, I could just beat him up.// she thought, attempting to compensate for her lack of "toughness". She sighed again with dismay, allowing the ex-president to tail not far behind.
And silence reigned.
In the country side
I wonder far and wide
The isolation gets me again
"If you feel the need to follow me, then I suppose I should let you know that I'm not going anywhere in particular." she stated to see if there would be any reaction. She peered over her shoulder, her brown locks tilting to the left as she did so. Rufus, who placed his shotgun in a holster propped on Dark Nation v.2's shoulderblade (yes, *version*--Dark Nation was no ordinary panther), gave her a look that clearly said "I don't really care". The vein in her forehead pulsated again, and she grit her teeth. He followed, despite probably feeling the murderous rage emitting from Tifa. But she quickly regained her composure, sighed, and continued going. . .
I dont know where to go
When I feel like talking all night
Its time to open myself
Do something new
I want to stop and grow up again
---
"So, we splittin' up?" Barret Wallace inquired of Cloud, folding his huge arms and lumbering at least a foot above everyone else. Cloud shrugged, standing near the front and folding his arms. ". . .Awrigh'. Jes' hopin' you know what you doin'." Barret scratched the back of his head with the Missing Score, which looked like a rather odd task.
"Are you taking *his* side?" Cloud seethed, glancing up at Barret with a vicious look on his face. Barret backed away a little, before shaking his head.
"Naw, hell naw. But I been thinkin'. . ." Barret slowly trailed off, looking to the side, obviously contemplative of what would happen if he was outright with the spikey-headed team captain. He decided that it wasn't worth it, and turned, walking into the inside part of the Highwind. Taking note of Yuffie, he walked over to the 16-year-old ninja. "Yo, you okay?"
"About as fine as roadkill," came the sardonic reply as she breathed heavily in order not to. . .uh. . .upchuck. "Ugh. . .we're out of Tranquilizers. . ." Her face turned about as green as the top she wore. She began to wail melodramatically. "I'm too young to die! I haven't stolen Cid's cigarettes yet! I haven't dyed Vincent's cape hot pink! I haven't made Tifa wear something low-cut! IT CAN'T END LIKE THIS!"
"Uh. . .yeah. . .whatever." Barret sweatdropped and watched Yuffie in either amusement, worry about her mental stability, etc.
"I, I, I haven't seen Cloud with his hair down! I haven't successfully pulled Red XIII's tail! OH, WOE IS MEEEE!" she heaved, the green color unknowingly disappearing from my face.
"Uh. . ."
". . .Well, whaddaya know. I'm not dying after all. I guess incessant ranting is more awesome then it already is." Yuffie stood up slowly, rubbing the back of her head with the "sockish thing" (as Cid put it).
"Did you ask Spikes for a Tranquilizer, though? I'd be damned if he doesn't keep all the stuff to himself."
". . .Not really. . .Woah! Woah--" The ninja began breathing heavily again, the green returning to her face. She instinctively placed one hand to her mouth and limped to the front of the ship, approaching Cloud slowly. "Hey Spikes. . .got a spare. . .ugh. . .Tranquilizer?" she asked meekly, grinning from ear to ear as she asked. Much to the ninja's contempt, the mercenary didn't bother to look at her. She frowned, the color draining from her face. "Hey! Look at me when I'm speaking to you, you spikey-headed idiot!"
No reply.
"Soooo--! You think you can just IGNORE your bestest pal! And more or less, ME!" This fit of rage forced Yuffie to forget her nausea in order to successfully scream angrily at Cloud. "Pfft! I thought you were a cool guy, Strife! Now you're just. . .just. . .UGH!" The Shinobi threw her arms up and ran into the cabin.
---
*FLASHBACK*
Yuffie knelt on the back of the Gondola, hanging out and watching the fireworks explode. Normally, she would've turned a verdant color in a fit of nausea, but she was way too damn excited to let a little thing like "motion sickness" get in her way. Her grayish-purple eyes scanned the horizon, and often widened in an expression of astonishment as fireworks would explode only meters away from the Gondola.
Yes, she *was* enjoying herself.
Cloud kept his arms folded and his head tilted downwards, eyes glued to the wooden floor. Yuffie sighed inwardly: "keep me company" she said, and. . .well, he *was*. But still, it was kind of awkward. //Y'know, people on dates really don't do stuff like this. . .wait, this is a date?// The ninja glanced over her shoulder idly--so passively, you could hardly notice she was actually looking at him. . . It wasn't like she hadn't dragged him with her for any reason. I mean, the idiot kind of *ruined* the play. Yuffie had slapped Cloud and proceeded to kick the hell out of the Evil Dragon King.
//Heheh. That was kind of funny.// she thought, smiling slightly to herself as she watched a few Chocobos make their way around the course. A white one made a small leap as the one behind it nudged it slightly, causing one of its feathers to hop up and become lost in the dark.
Yuffie proceeded to stand up, walk to the other end of the Gondola and kiss Cloud on the cheek. (A/N: I don't exactly remember how this happened. ^_^; Sorry, but I'm doing the best I can. . .) She nonchalantly stood and walked back to the opposite side, kneeling on her wooden bench-y seat and staring out the window, attempting to hide her face.
Okay, so it must've been easier to read the back of her head then she would've thought. Clearly, though she wasn't trembling or anything, she was completely and utterly mortified. //DAMN THESE TEENAGE HORMONES! AAAHHHH--// Cloud, however, was silent, though color speckled his face as he continued to stare at the floor, as if there was something really awesome about it that only he could see.
As the Gondola ride came to a close, Yuffie attempted to minimize contact as they wormed their way out of the Gondola, attempting to flush the bright red under her eyes. She rubbed her face frantically--even the cool night air did *not* help the fact that her face was probably the color of a firetruck, and that her cheeks burned with horror.
"Cloud?" she asked tentatively. Cloud turned his face away, obviously hiding any sort of emotion. Good. She might've not been able to handle it. "Say something! . . .Anything! Break the silence!" Yuffie encouraged, arms hanging limply at sides.
". . . . .Something."
*SLAAAAP*
---
A/N: XD wow. I don't remember a lot about the date thing. If I did it wrong. . . well, deal with my horrible memory XD
. . .Note that Yuffie's little pieces are used, considering that *Yuffie* took Cloud out on the date at the Gold Saucer. Difficult? Yes. Possible? Also yes. ^_^ It's a really cute scene, and if you're willing to play through it, it's worth watching I think.
. . .uh. . .o_O It may seem like the couples are out of whack due to some scenes in this chappie--the Gold Saucer flashback, Rufus, etc. etc. Don't hate me because I'm trying to make it seem like other things are going on. . .XD
Disclaimer: Whiffle bats, etc. do not belong to Daisaku. Darnit X_x durr. song used is the english opening of Yu Yu Hakusho. I like it, It's spiffy.
---
Tifa's wine-colored eyes widened, the tip of the gun pressing into her forehead. She could practically *feel* the ring being imbedded into her forehead, but her fists clenched at her sides and tensed to prevent slight trembling on her part. Her brow knitted into a vicious frown, and with one swift motion of her wrist she hurled the gun upwards at her attacker's face. By the lack of splatting or something, it obviously didn't make contact, but it was enough for her to leap out of the way.
Her eyes adjusted to the darkness as the flame from her little spell dispersed, and her eyes glowed a little--either to aid with seeing in the dark, or from the slight Lifestream contact. . .but anyway, her eyes cut as she focused on her attacker.
"Rufus Shinra. What do you think you're doing?"
Rufus ran a hand through his blondish hair as he leaned on his shotgun with his left forearm, the other hand on his waist and bending forward. He smirked slightly, and maybe a little suggestively at Tifa, who returned the stare spitefully. Last time, Tifa thought he was killed by Diamond WEAPON's explosions. In fact, she was almost *positive* he had. But there he was, looking perfectly fine--though his white (or silvery) trenchcoat had slight streaks of tears of rips, and there seemed to be charred spots on his face and hands. In fact, there was a long streak of a scar running from his left eye to nearly the right side of his neck.
"Passing through." he answered smoothly, as if trying to assassinate a savior of the Planet was almost as simple as picking begonias from an open meadow. "There is no problem." he added, tilting back up and propping the gun on his shoulder.
"I'm sure there isn't." she replied calmly, walking calmly to Rydia and patting her on the neck, then, she whistled and walked off. ". . .Is there any particular reason you're following me, MISTER Shinra?"
Flowing in the crowd
In a faceless town
I need to feel the touch of a friend
"Not one." came the nonchalant reply, paired with a condescending look.
"So, to put it lightly, buzz off, Mister Shinra. I don't really enjoy having to care about a gun pointing to my head in my sleep." Tifa clambered onto the gold Chocobo, patting her lightly and holding a small Sylkis green in front of her face. She retracted it as she felt the eating motions emitting from Rydia, then began to allow it to trot off in some random, inane direction. She could travel the world for all she cared. The freedom was refreshing for once.
Unfortunately, Rufus, stalker anonymous, trotted after her on some black panther-type creature resembling Dark Nation. The vein in Tifa's forehead pulsated in irritation, and her head spun around.
"Did you hear me? Go away." she retorted, throwing her arms up in frustration. Rufus smirked and chuckled. //What kind of stalker freak IS this guy?!// she mouthed to herself, folding her arms and awaited an answer. If she was gonna get one, anyway. She just *knew* he was going to do something--be it stupid, or perverse, or murderous.
"I don't see a reason for me to stop. I also have no reason to cause you harm." he said calmly. "As you can see, the Shin-Ra company no longer focuses on the original family."
//. . .So basically what he's telling me--// "You're going to be following me, aren't you." It was more of a statement then a question, but she could practically feel Rufus nodding his head behind her. //Arrogant bastard.// "And just why?" Tifa inquired, body tilting backwards from on Rydia, her crimson eyes boring into Rufus's stale blue ones.
"I have nowhere to go."
Tifa blanched slightly, frowning. Similar dilemmas, yes: Tifa was alone with no one to go to, Rufus was alone with nowhere to go to. But fact stood that Tifa still held an intial grudge against the former president. One, he was an asshole that enjoyed pissing off people. Two, he was arrogant. Three, he was persistant. Oh yeah, and four: he was in ShinRa and attempted to suck out all the Mako from the Promised Land. And Tifa despised the idea of a person like this following her. Normally, she wouldn't've minded, if he hadn't tried to kill her about 15 minutes ago. . .
Tifa fought the urge to give a small, visible smile. Cid, Yuffie, and Barret must've rubbed off on her after all those times.
She sighed, her gentle side taking over, and simply trotted off into the distance, Rufus not far behind. //Besides, if he does anything, I could just beat him up.// she thought, attempting to compensate for her lack of "toughness". She sighed again with dismay, allowing the ex-president to tail not far behind.
And silence reigned.
In the country side
I wonder far and wide
The isolation gets me again
"If you feel the need to follow me, then I suppose I should let you know that I'm not going anywhere in particular." she stated to see if there would be any reaction. She peered over her shoulder, her brown locks tilting to the left as she did so. Rufus, who placed his shotgun in a holster propped on Dark Nation v.2's shoulderblade (yes, *version*--Dark Nation was no ordinary panther), gave her a look that clearly said "I don't really care". The vein in her forehead pulsated again, and she grit her teeth. He followed, despite probably feeling the murderous rage emitting from Tifa. But she quickly regained her composure, sighed, and continued going. . .
I dont know where to go
When I feel like talking all night
Its time to open myself
Do something new
I want to stop and grow up again
---
"So, we splittin' up?" Barret Wallace inquired of Cloud, folding his huge arms and lumbering at least a foot above everyone else. Cloud shrugged, standing near the front and folding his arms. ". . .Awrigh'. Jes' hopin' you know what you doin'." Barret scratched the back of his head with the Missing Score, which looked like a rather odd task.
"Are you taking *his* side?" Cloud seethed, glancing up at Barret with a vicious look on his face. Barret backed away a little, before shaking his head.
"Naw, hell naw. But I been thinkin'. . ." Barret slowly trailed off, looking to the side, obviously contemplative of what would happen if he was outright with the spikey-headed team captain. He decided that it wasn't worth it, and turned, walking into the inside part of the Highwind. Taking note of Yuffie, he walked over to the 16-year-old ninja. "Yo, you okay?"
"About as fine as roadkill," came the sardonic reply as she breathed heavily in order not to. . .uh. . .upchuck. "Ugh. . .we're out of Tranquilizers. . ." Her face turned about as green as the top she wore. She began to wail melodramatically. "I'm too young to die! I haven't stolen Cid's cigarettes yet! I haven't dyed Vincent's cape hot pink! I haven't made Tifa wear something low-cut! IT CAN'T END LIKE THIS!"
"Uh. . .yeah. . .whatever." Barret sweatdropped and watched Yuffie in either amusement, worry about her mental stability, etc.
"I, I, I haven't seen Cloud with his hair down! I haven't successfully pulled Red XIII's tail! OH, WOE IS MEEEE!" she heaved, the green color unknowingly disappearing from my face.
"Uh. . ."
". . .Well, whaddaya know. I'm not dying after all. I guess incessant ranting is more awesome then it already is." Yuffie stood up slowly, rubbing the back of her head with the "sockish thing" (as Cid put it).
"Did you ask Spikes for a Tranquilizer, though? I'd be damned if he doesn't keep all the stuff to himself."
". . .Not really. . .Woah! Woah--" The ninja began breathing heavily again, the green returning to her face. She instinctively placed one hand to her mouth and limped to the front of the ship, approaching Cloud slowly. "Hey Spikes. . .got a spare. . .ugh. . .Tranquilizer?" she asked meekly, grinning from ear to ear as she asked. Much to the ninja's contempt, the mercenary didn't bother to look at her. She frowned, the color draining from her face. "Hey! Look at me when I'm speaking to you, you spikey-headed idiot!"
No reply.
"Soooo--! You think you can just IGNORE your bestest pal! And more or less, ME!" This fit of rage forced Yuffie to forget her nausea in order to successfully scream angrily at Cloud. "Pfft! I thought you were a cool guy, Strife! Now you're just. . .just. . .UGH!" The Shinobi threw her arms up and ran into the cabin.
---
*FLASHBACK*
Yuffie knelt on the back of the Gondola, hanging out and watching the fireworks explode. Normally, she would've turned a verdant color in a fit of nausea, but she was way too damn excited to let a little thing like "motion sickness" get in her way. Her grayish-purple eyes scanned the horizon, and often widened in an expression of astonishment as fireworks would explode only meters away from the Gondola.
Yes, she *was* enjoying herself.
Cloud kept his arms folded and his head tilted downwards, eyes glued to the wooden floor. Yuffie sighed inwardly: "keep me company" she said, and. . .well, he *was*. But still, it was kind of awkward. //Y'know, people on dates really don't do stuff like this. . .wait, this is a date?// The ninja glanced over her shoulder idly--so passively, you could hardly notice she was actually looking at him. . . It wasn't like she hadn't dragged him with her for any reason. I mean, the idiot kind of *ruined* the play. Yuffie had slapped Cloud and proceeded to kick the hell out of the Evil Dragon King.
//Heheh. That was kind of funny.// she thought, smiling slightly to herself as she watched a few Chocobos make their way around the course. A white one made a small leap as the one behind it nudged it slightly, causing one of its feathers to hop up and become lost in the dark.
Yuffie proceeded to stand up, walk to the other end of the Gondola and kiss Cloud on the cheek. (A/N: I don't exactly remember how this happened. ^_^; Sorry, but I'm doing the best I can. . .) She nonchalantly stood and walked back to the opposite side, kneeling on her wooden bench-y seat and staring out the window, attempting to hide her face.
Okay, so it must've been easier to read the back of her head then she would've thought. Clearly, though she wasn't trembling or anything, she was completely and utterly mortified. //DAMN THESE TEENAGE HORMONES! AAAHHHH--// Cloud, however, was silent, though color speckled his face as he continued to stare at the floor, as if there was something really awesome about it that only he could see.
As the Gondola ride came to a close, Yuffie attempted to minimize contact as they wormed their way out of the Gondola, attempting to flush the bright red under her eyes. She rubbed her face frantically--even the cool night air did *not* help the fact that her face was probably the color of a firetruck, and that her cheeks burned with horror.
"Cloud?" she asked tentatively. Cloud turned his face away, obviously hiding any sort of emotion. Good. She might've not been able to handle it. "Say something! . . .Anything! Break the silence!" Yuffie encouraged, arms hanging limply at sides.
". . . . .Something."
*SLAAAAP*
---
A/N: XD wow. I don't remember a lot about the date thing. If I did it wrong. . . well, deal with my horrible memory XD