"Yo Spiky! You better make sure Marlene'll be ok!", Barret bellowed as his daughter Marlene followed the mute orphan Denzel I took into my care onto the craft that would take us to the Gold Saucer. The second Marlene had heard we were going to the theme park she begged the large black man she called her father to let her go with us. Barret couldn't say no.
"Don't worry Dad, Tifa's here so we'll be fine!", the seven year old girl said with confidence. I heard Tifa chuckle slightly. I waved good-bye to Barret as I stepped into the cable car where the others were waiting.
The ride was relatively short. Yuffie chatted with my father while she fought off the feeling of slight motion sickness. Denzel and Marlene, who quickly befriended each other upon meeting, stared out of a window together amazed at the height they were and kept looking for the Gold Saucer in the distance. Occasionally Marlene would pull Denzel's pen from it's holding place between his ear and head. Denzel would snatch it back slightly blushing and putting the pen back earning a giggle from Marlene making Denzel blush slightly harder. He looks like a little reporter! Were the young girl's first words meeting Denzel, earning laughs from Barret, his fiancé Elmyra, Tifa, and even a chuckle from me.
"It's been a while since we visited this place Cloud.", Tifa said to me. "Do you remember that last time we were here?", she asked.
Silence, all of us stared in silence and disbelief. We did it. We had cleared Holy's path to help save the planet for Meteor. Was it even possible? One voice brought the rest of us out of our hypnotic silence.
"I know this is going to sound weird from me everyone.", Vincent began. "However, we just defeated Sephiroth and saved the planet. Shouldn't we be celebrating?", he asked.
"Vincent's right!", Yuffie shouted excited. After a small debate we decided to go to the Gold Saucer for a well-fought vacation.
During the time at the Gold Saucer. We witness what I guess would be a miracle. It all started with Cid giving Yuffie a dare. Knowing her motion sickness Cid dared her to ride to roller coaster three times without throwing up. Yuffie, being well Yuffie, took the pilot on the challenge. Several minutes later a dizzy Yuffie staggered up to Cid demanding the gil they wagered.
"Cough it up old man I won……", Yuffie said passing out falling flat on the floor. Laughter arose from the sight. It seem like hours until we all feel silent to a strange sound. All eyes were on Vincent who's laughter that alerted us so began to die. Vincent now aware of all of us staring at him wide-eyed, including Yuffie who had regain consciousness, fluffed his cloak in embarrassment and walked away.
"Yeah Vincent laughed for once. Shame we acted so surprise.", I said.
"He decided to open up and we reacted wrong huh?", Tifa said.
"I guess."
Tifa sighed. "I wonder what changes happened since Dio retired.", she said.
"Retired?", I asked.
"Well officially he retired after a lawsuit. Some family claimed he molested their child.", Tifa explained.
"That's fucked up.", I whispered.
"Well the family could never prove it so I think they were just trying to get money from it. Anyways, guilty or not Dio knew no one was going to bring their family here if the owner was a pedophile so he retired and handed the ownership to a lucky employee.", Tifa explained grimly. The cable car stopped signaling our arrival at the amusement park. We all got off the cable car and as we did Marlene, Denzel, and myself stop dead in our tracks staring at awe in our new surroundings. I heard the sound of Denzel's pad of paper hitting the ground. I looked down to see Marlene pick it up and hand it back to Denzel.
"You should be more careful Denzel.", she said innocently. Denzel wrote a 'Thank you' back making Marlene giggle. Apparently she found this way of communicating with us cute. Tifa lead the way into the welcome center of the Gold Saucer. She showed the attendant a gold ticket, a lifetime pass from what I remember, letting our whole group in. Immediately I noticed there were two extra chutes from the last time we were at the gold saucer. One had a picture of a tiger on it and said 'Zoo'. While the other had a tree and the word 'Park'. "Ooh Denzel lets go to the park!", Marlene nearly squealed grabbing Denzel by his left wrist and tanking him to the chute. Denzel could do nothing in protest. Though I doubt the young boy could write a word in edge-wise.
Tifa chuckled next to me. "You Spiky, me and you dad are going to check out the event square!", Yuffie said.
"Why?", I asked.
"I'm taking him to see the concert tonight. Someone needs to teach this fossil a lesson on current music.". Yuffie said shocking me.
"Hey watch it girl, this 'fossil' has more than enough strength to kick your ass.", my father said following Yuffie down the chute to the wonder square.
"Looks like it's just me and you now Cloud.", Tifa said with a bright smile.
"You sure Denzel will be ok?", I asked.
"Don't worry he'll be fine. There's enough security to make sure he'll be safe.", Tifa said soothingly.
"No I'm afraid Marlene will make him play to death.", I said chuckling. Tifa laughed as well.
"Well where should we go Cloud?", Tifa asked standing next to me.
I ran down the park path chasing the brunette who ran ahead of me giggling. She would slow down deliberately just to get my hopes up before running out of reach.
"You gotta do better than that Denzel.", Marlene chimed running ahead of me just barely out of reach. I followed laughing, this is the most fun I've ever had. I was liked well by the others were I lived in the bad part of town. I guess you can say Marlene is my first friend I can play with. I dived for Marlene hoping to catch her. But she saw me out of the corner of her eye and fell flat in the face in the dirt.
"You ok Denzel?", Marlene ask poking me in the shoulder. I sat up a nodded slowly brushing the dirt off me. Marlene giggled and began running again. "Follow me.", she said going to a chute marked 'Ghost'. I watched her jump in and I followed. I fell several feet until I hit a rubbery, bounce pad. A sudden rush of air lifted me several floors. Suddenly the air flow stopped and a metal floor closed below my feet landing me safely…..in a graveyard.
"Denzel over here!", Marlene shouted waving at me from the door of a haunted house going inside it. I followed Marlene quickly into the old house. Once I was in there I couldn't find Marlene. I began searching for the girl I had found a friend in around the mansion. I saw a dark opening into another room thinking she went in there to scare me for fun. I nearly ran in there hoping to get the jump on here when I ran into a body and fell backwards. I looked up to see red eyes staring back at me…
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