Valentine's day…it was nearly Valentine's Day!?
Ariana groaned into her pillow.
How did time move so fast? She was only in that training boot camp for what only felt like a few weeks. Not three months.
Urgh, she wasn't able to make a large-scale prank on the Turks this year.
Wait. Valentine's day…she could use that.
The SOLDIER sprang up from her bed, moving to her room's white erase board. The twenty-seven-year-old uncapped a marker, tapping it against her chin.
Hm…there might've been no time to make a huge prank on the Turks and SOLDIERs, so she had to scale it down.
Maybe it'll just be for Uncle. Cloud was always fun to mess around with, and that was why she adored him. He just went with the flow, for the most part.
...
Okay, so what was something she could do…
Ah.
Valentine's day was full of pink and red, usually. And her uncle usually only wore muted colors…
Ah ha! That was something she could put together.
Ariana pulled out her PHS, dialing Andrea Rhodea's number.
"Darling Ariana!" he picked up almost immediately, "What can I do for you?"
"Hi Andrea!" she greeted back, "Sorry about the late hour, I had idea for this Valentine's Day."
"Oh? Do tell," Ariana could hear the grin in his voice.
"Yeah, so here's the plan…"
"LITTLE DOVE!"
Ariana grinned when she heard Cloud's irritated voice, teleporting to him. The blonde had a furiously bright blush on his pale face, his arms crossed while he stood in his office.
The SOLDIER couldn't smother an evil cackle when she saw him in the all pink getup she put together, with the only non-pink thing on his person was the Tsurugi.
Of course, she would never put her Uncle's beloved swords-masquerading-as-one-sword under that kind of treatment.
"What in the Name of The Planet?" The blonde facepalmed, shoulders twitching.
"Happy Valentine's Day, Uncle!" Ariana gave a shiteating grin, her main wing out so she could take him into a wide hug, careful of the sword on his back.
"Ana, I swear you're going to give me grey hairs," Cloud groaned, his nose twitching from all the feathers, and a headache pounding in his ears from his panic after missed alarms.
"Nah! I think you're good, Uncle," she grinned, before letting go.
Two boxes of chocolates materialized in her hand, giving them to him with a flourish of her arm.
"…Thanks." He gingerly took it, as if it would explode in his face.
Ariana caught the suspicion on his face, tilting her head in a catlike manner. Her pupils blew out, rounding with supposed sincerity.
"What?"
"This isn't a prank too, is it?" Cloud skeptically narrowed his eyes at the innocent pink heart shaped boxes.
"…No…?"
Now, to keep it on record, Cloud didn't trust like that.
"What? It isn't!" the younger woman insisted, grabbing them back, "But if you don't want them, I'll give them to Father myself!"
"Wait, one's actually for Seph?" He tried to take it back, Ariana hissing while she curled around it, wing flapping forward to cover her face.
"Nope! It's mine now!"
The SOLDIER even blew a raspberry at him.
...
Alright, if she was being difficult...
He had a trick up his sleeve. A secret weapon.
Bright green slit eyes peeked around black feathers to see his reaction, only to catch Cloud's 'secret weapon' at full blast.
The dreaded Kicked Chocobo Pout.
Ariana blanched, hiding again, but it was already too late.
She lost.
"Fine!" Wing dematerializing, the force of the boxes made a small breeze when it was offered out again.
"Thank you," Cloud rubbed his temple when the chocolates were in hand, "Now don't you have something else to do?"
"Ahaha, yeah I do Uncle, bye!" Ariana laughed nervously, inching away.
Gah, even when Uncle was in all pink, he was a force to be reckoned with, Ariana thought, before she teleported to the main Turk office to pester her brother.
"Ghost~!"
Without missing a beat, the Turk was at her side.
"Sister."
"Here!" A pile of bright pink and red heart shaped chocolate boxes were in her arms, easily carried by her SOLDIER strength.
Ghost just gave her an unimpressed stare.
"It's not a prank, is it?"
"Why does everyone expect it to be a prank?"
Ariana had to restrain herself not to throw the boxes into the air.
"Yo, Disaster SOLDIER!" Reno popped up; his dress shirt partially unbuttoned as always. He blinked at the boxes, and Ariana could practically hear the gears in his head turning.
"Valentine's chocolates? Sweet!"
The pun very much not intended, the older Turk snagged the middle one that had his name scrawled on the side, opening it to find the pink colored candy and popping one in his mouth.
He chewed experimentally before his blue eyes widened, "Wow, they're pretty good!"
Ariana's face turned pink, a blush coming to her cheeks.
Ghost weighed the pros and cons of eating them in his head, before taking the one with his name on it.
"Chocolate?" Two Guns appeared out of nowhere, plucking his own corresponding box out of the pile, "Guys! Ana has chocolates!"
All the Turks flocked to the SOLDIER, clambering to get their own respective boxes.
The hubbub made her sit down when all of them were accounted for, Ariana's shoulders drooping down while she braced herself against a table.
"So…where'd you get them from?" Ghost asked, head tilting away when he heard Two Guns gush about how his chocolates were made in the shape of his pistols.
"…I made them."
Ghost paused for a moment, chewing thoughtfully.
"Hm…it really isn't a prank, is it," he said finally.
Ariana hummed, shifting so she was leaning against the table with her hand tucked under her head and elbow on the flat surface.
"Nope. I thought about it, but then again, Uncle was already subject to everything becoming pink. Plus, it is Valentine's Day. There is no hate, only joy; for you are beloved by the Goddess. It also gets boring doing the same thing over and over." The SOLDIER blinked with surprised when Ghost offered a chocolate to her.
She didn't hesitate in taking it.
"…Thanks. Don't give me any more after this, 'kay? I already had to eat up all the chocolates that I had to redo a few times."
Ariana suffered with a stomachache before her body managed to burn off the mountain of chocolate she ate.
The twins sat there, Ghost methodically eating his share one by one.
The older twin stood up after ten minutes, Ghost raising an eyebrow.
"You give them to the Trouble Triplets yet? Or Seventh Heaven?"
"Ah, I just left them in their rooms, plus I unloaded a bunch on Tifa for her, Aerith, Zack and Barret, then I stopped by Sciences for Grandma, Vincent and Cid," Ariana answered, "I'm gonna give them to the rest of the Board."
The SOLDIER turned on her heel, teleporting to her Dad's office, who just so happened to have Papa in it too…and they were passionately kissing.
"What's up, Ana?" Genesis pulled away from his husband after he heard the telltale scuff of a teleport, only to find Ariana facing the other way, her posture suspiciously straight.
"Hi Dad!" she squeaked, turning back around slowly, "Uh, if I knew you were busy I woulda knocked…"
"I think it's already too late for that," Angeal chuckled over seeing his daughter's bright red face, "Happy Valentine's Day."
By now, Ariana's spine unfroze from the stick straight posture.
"Happy Valentine's Day!" she greeted back, voice still squeaky, with two boxes of chocolates appearing in her hands, "Here, for you and for Dad."
With trepidation, the woman watched when they opened their boxes.
"Are they in the shape of my Rapier?" Genesis asked, fishing one out of the box.
"Yeah! And Papa's the shape of the Buster Sword!" Ariana beamed, eyes sparkling, "Plus, I made Uncle's with all of Tsurugi's blades, and Father's the shape of Masamune and mini versions so they'd fit in the box. Like, it took a few days to make the molds, but it was sooo worth it."
"You've made them well," Angeal noted, snapping off the blade of one of the chocolate Buster Swords.
Genesis patted her on the head, and it felt like the corners of her mouth was getting sore from smiling so much.
"Yeah, so, I still have a few boxes to give out," Ariana told them, "I'll see you guys later! Bye Papa, Dad!"
Giving them both hugs, she teleported again, this time landing in Rufus' office.
"Disaster SOLDIER," the blonde acknowledged her presence, his eyes still glued to the report he was reading, "What brings you here?"
Beside his table, Dark Nation perked up when she saw the SOLDIER, and gave a welcoming 'woof!'.
"Hiya Mr. Prez!" the SOLDIER skipped over to him, "Here! Chocolates!"
The considerably nicest box that Ariana had thumped on the table, Rufus pausing in his work to take a look at it.
"Valentine's day gifts?" he asked, unraveling the neatly tied bow from the box, "Thank you." The President opened it to find a bunch of pink coin shaped chocolates, plus some shaped like Dark Nation nestled inside.
"Oh, and these are some dog biscuits for Dark Nation," Ariana pulled out a smaller heart shaped box, "I can't let her have a Valentine's Day without some treats."
When the dog heard her name, she stood, trotting over to the SOLDIER.
"Little Dark!" she crooned, putting down the box so she could pet the dog and give her a treat. Ariana knelt down, giggling when Dark Nation gave doggy kisses.
"Have you visited my older brother?" Rufus spoke up, familiar with his SOLDIER and his pet's friendly relationship.
"Oh, Lazard? Not yet, I'm saving best for last," Ariana looked up, scratching between Dark Nation's ears.
"I see." Rufus made a shooing motion with his hand, "Dark, heel."
The SOLIDER stood up while the dog went back to her space next to Rufus' desk, laying down on her doggy bed.
"I'll be off, Mr. President! Bye~!"
This time, Ariana walked out the room, making her way down one level.
"Lazard, Lazard, lovely darling Lazard~!" she hummed under her breath, the remaining box of chocolate clutched in her arms.
When she got there, the SOLDIER peeked around, stealthily making her move to Lazard's main office.
Ariana knocked on the door, waiting for a response.
"Come in."
The SOLDIER walked in, her pace considerably slower than her usual brisk walk.
"The Reason I Became an Alcoholic," was the first words out of Lazard's mouth when he saw her, and he put the pen down when he saw the box protectively cradled in her arms.
"Hi VP Lazard," she waved with the box in her hands, "Um, happy Valentine's Day!"
Carefully, Ariana put it down, stepping back and expectantly looked from Lazard to the box and back again.
Lazard looked at the cheery package in front of him like it was going to bite him.
"...Well?" he asked when he looked up at Ariana.
"Um, why don't you try them?" she asked and was faced with a familiar suspicious glance.
"This isn't a prank, is it Disaster?"
Ariana's hair flew with how fast she shook her head.
"No! I've been-I've been giving chocolates to everyone, hehehe…" she fidgeted, twitching.
"Hm…" Lazard undid the bow that held it together, glancing at the chocolates.
They were in the shape of little alcohol bottles.
"Are these actually alcoholic?" he asked, picking one up to study it.
"Yep! Um, I found a recipe for it online, so…" Ariana's head turned, a blush warming her cheeks, "D-don't eat too many at once if you're at work. I put a bit of SOLDIER grade stuff in there. Bye!"
The woman was gone before Lazard could say another word.
Ariana was slumped against her kitchen table, burning face in her arms.
"What if he doesn't like them?!" she wailed, already imagining Lazard lovely darling Lazard throwing them out.
It was already bad enough she took a day off for today since she didn't plan on working on Valentine's.
"And I really put the good stuff in them too…"
A text rang out from her PHS, and she unlocked it without looking at the sender.
It showed a half empty box of the chocolate liquor bottles and a telltale smudge of chocolate on a table.
'Thanks- LD'.
Tears beaded at Ariana's eyes, a relieved slump coming to her shoulders.
"Oh, thank the Goddess, he liked them."
After a moment, she blanched.
"He ate that many and he's still working?! That can knock down a SOLDIER in three chocolates! How's he even able to rub two braincells together after that?!"
The woman facepalmed, muttering, "I bet he's already drunk off his ass."
…
"I hope he doesn't think a Cura will help with liver disease."
…
Another ping came from the phone, this time from Tifa.
'Hey Ana! We're doing a little get together after Cloud and Seph get out of work. Feel free to stop by tonight! - Teef.'
The message made her smile, finally getting her out of the slump she was in. Hmm, it was at least four hours until Uncle and Father (plus her other parents plus Ari and the triplets) were out.
Hehehe, it was time to make…and eat…more chocolates. Her poor squad was probably dying for something sweet after their wilderness retraining.
Well.
Time waited for no one!
In a whirlwind of action, Ariana changed her clothes from muted blacks and grey into a much brighter rose red, allowing herself to do away with such drab clothes.
It wasn't like she particularly enjoyed wearing bright clothing, but her standard SOLDIER uniform was much like a comfort object, like her sword's materias.
She spent the whole four hours making chocolates, using some Firas and blizzard materias to help heat and cool them quickly.
This day didn't particularly mean anything for her.
Ariana remembered how some of the scientists back then would sometimes talk about their spouses making them a nice dinner. She thought about the SOLDIERs back then swooning over each other on Valentine's. She hadn't really known what that day meant either.
It didn't matter.
The woman blinked, her old memories falling away.
Right. Chocolates. Gathering at Seventh Heaven.
Time to go.
Ariana boxed the chocolates, knotting cute bows of red ribbons. She stored it in her materia, checked herself over, and turned on her heel with the whisper of feathers.
She reappeared at Seventh Heaven, brushing her hair back from her face, and walked in.
"Ariana!" Tifa noticed her almost immediately, her burgundy eyes bright, "Everyone else is here!"
Ariana blinked when Tifa practically dragged her in by the hand and found herself in a somewhat crowded space with her family and Squad mingling inside the pink and red decorated building.
"Hey, Commander!" Gabriel Nikkos waved, "Guys, Commander Crescent's here!" The brown-haired, black-eyed SOLDIER got the rest of the room's attention, and there were responding greetings from the Third Armament.
"Commander!" Dante Rhea approached, his long black hair in a braid over his shoulder, "Ah, happy Valentine's!"
"Happy Valentine's Day," the green eyed SOLDIER said back, summoning her chocolates into her hands, "Here, I made enough for the whole squad."
"Oooo!" Second Class Lucien Mueller ran over, "Commander, you're so kind!"
Ariana laughed while setting the boxes down, "Of course. I know the retraining feels like forever, and we've only been eating rations for months. It's not often I can treat you guys to these things."
Lucien went through the boxes, finding his name on one and excitedly opening it to stuff some in his mouth.
The woman let her Squad scramble for the chocolates, still giggling to herself how her typically brutal and bloodthirsty SOLDIERs swarming like a pack of piranhas.
Ariana watched as Second Class Jun Zheng waved a deck of cards at Second Class Victor Miller, Katsuo Miyagawa, and Logan Parker to start a game of poker, the five taking their boxes, while Dante and Lucien declined and instead were talking with Wedge and Biggs about getting some food for the game.
Looking to one of the corners, she saw Genesis and Angeal eat whatever they ordered from Tifa.
At a different table, she saw her Father and Uncle talking to each other, extremely close and their lips inches away from each other. Cloud was even sitting on Father's lap.
Urgh, even if it was Valentine's Day, it was embarrassing to see her parents and Uncle making out in public.
"Aridai," she said to empty air, noticing that her twin wasn't anywhere to be seen.
"Ariana," Aridai came out of thin air, settling behind his sister, "The rest of our siblings are unfortunately unavailable. Should I bring them?"
"No," she shook her head, "The triplets already insisted that they shouldn't be forced into family gatherings." Ariana's eyes fell, "I won't break that trust. If they want to come, let them. If they stay elsewhere, then it doesn't matter."
Aridai shrugged, waving a hand errantly, "Oh, and I pretty much reserved the whole of Seventh Heaven tonight, so just ask Teef what you want." He didn't wait for a response back, disappearing like a ghost in the crowd.
"Ah, Ghost doesn't look too happy," Tifa came by, giving the older woman a small box.
"Hm?" The silver and red-haired woman tilted her head, pupils narrowing when she saw the tag.
"It's from the guys. The rest of the crew liked your chocolates, so," Tifa smiled at the SOLDIER, "You can also thank VP Deusericus for his patronage that I had enough gil aside. I got them from Sector 1 from that one chocolatier you like."
Ariana's nose twitched when she saw the catnip infused chocolates, closing it quickly so she couldn't get drunk off the scents. It would be rude to be in a catnip induced coma in front of company.
"Thank you, Tifa," the SOLDIER didn't react when Tifa hugged her.
"No, no, thank you," the dark-haired woman said, then pulled away, "It's nice being able to get a bunch of people together and see them enjoy each other's company. Especially since we all know each other through you."
Tifa gestured to the various SOLDIERs scattered around the restaurant, watching Biggs and Jessie talk to them too.
"Yeah," Ariana agreed, her green cat slit eyes glowing fondly, content to sit by and watch life go on, "Heh, I can feel a Loveless verse come on."
"Ahaha, do tell," Genesis appeared like he was summoned with the mention of Loveless, "Which one, Ana?"
The younger woman hummed, a smile curling on her face.
"Even if the morrow is barren of promises, nothing shall forestall my return. To become the dew that quenches the land, to spare the sands, the seas, the skies, I offer thee this silent sacrifice."
End note: Ehehee, it was going to be short since i started it late yesterday, but the length got away from me...
Happy Valentine's Day! 3 3 3
Also, a list of Ariana's Second Class SOLDIER armament
Second Class Lieutenant Victor Miller- Second in command
Second Class Logan Parker
Second Class Jun Zheng
Second Class Gabriel Nikkos
Second Class Lucien Mueller
Second Class Dante Rhea
Second Class Katsuo Miyagawa