I.
"I can not believe the things that happen when I go away! I take some dumb family vacation and miss the juiciest scoop this dingy rabbit hole has ever had!" The town 'reporter' snorted smelly, purple whips of cigarette smoke from her nose and tried to catch the door before Cid could slam it closed. Aha! The Captain must have had all the tantalizing details of the Rocket Town Midnight Terror—no— the Rocket Town Midnight Menace. She liked the sound of that.
"I don't care about your goddamn paper! Get the fuck off my fucking porch, ya wench!" Cid spat. Tamar? Whatever the fuck her name was, was a lot stronger than she looked. He shoved on the front door, and she shoved back; trying to claw her way in. She managed to wedge her arm through the sliver of a crack left in the door. A voice recorder was tightly clutched in her fist; certainly recording.
"I've searched this whole town." She gnashed her teeth and gave another jab to the door with her knobby knee. "Mrs. Debora. The saggy hag you live next to. That promiscuous little couple down the street. I even hackled with the damn comedian. No one knows as much as I bet you do! Give me all the details Capn', and I'll hit the road. Out of your hair. Honest!" Tamar hissed. The door was cutting off her circulation.
"NO. Go away, you're gonna fuckin' wake up Shera!" Cid snarled and took a firm hold of her wrist. He shoved it right back through the door and prepared to swing his body weight into making sure it was firmly shut.
"I'll wake your freakin' girlfriend if you don't let me in! OH—" Tamar narrowed her eyes into suspicious slits "what does she know, hm? Are you shutting me out because you have something to hide? Did our favorite, long time, star crossed lovers go on a mission for the town?"
"Would you shut the fuck up?!" Cid gave one last push and the door slammed closed. He could hear her screech in frustration on the other side. "GO. A. WAY."
Tamar stomped around the house and rattled the kitchen window. "You can't hide in here forever! I'll get my damn interview!" She smothered her cigarette on the side of the house.
"Fuck off!" Cid yanked the curtains closed. He deeply sighed; wary of looking over his shoulder to the living room. Surprisingly, Shera was still sound asleep on the couch. So much for leaving. He knew if he left, Tamar would be stalking the town for him. Cid guessed the schematics in the garage would have to preoccupy him for now, and maybe he'd have to order some take out for Shera whenever she decided to wake.
II.
"Hey...? You alive over here?"
Shera slowly raised her head and wiped saliva from her cheek with the fabric of her shirt sleeve. "Hmn?" She scratched beneath the scrunchie holding her ponytail in place and blinked the grogginess of a long nap from her tear ducts. With a tense stretch, Shera clumsily twisted onto her back. Her shirt rode up over the bottom wire of her bra, and her glasses fell with a clatter to the hardwood.
"You've been sleep since we let the hens out, Shera." Cid appeared upside down above her head. From what she could tell, he was in a neutral mood. Grunting, Cid left her field of vision and a lamp light from the side table snapped on a short moment later; illuminating the living room and his face.
"...what?" Shera wasn't alert enough to comprehend his idiom.
"Nevermind 'bout it, Shera." Cid crouched down to scoop her granny glasses from the floor and handed them to her. He appeared to be gauging whether or not she looked well.
"Hungry...What time is it?" She suppressed a yawn after fixing her glasses back behind her ears. With a sigh through her nose, Shera sat up and leaned over the edge of the rumpled cushion she was seated on. She pushed up on her arms and popped a knot or two from her back.
"Eh," Cid glanced to the clock beneath the TV set. "six er' so. I was gonna go out while you were sleepin', but I changed my mind. Been in the garage for a while." That was partially the truth. "I ordered something. You know, if yer' hungry."
"I'm okay." She placed her hand on her head. The knot from earlier still ached, but not as much as her migraine did. Shera squinted past the bright light Cid had turned on. She considered reaching over and twisting it off. With another sigh, Shera stood and teetered around the side of the couch. Her head pounded with being up right, and she felt over-heated in her neck.
"That's bullshit." Cid moved a step or two to the side and blocked her from leaving the living room just yet. "You ain't gottah get up if you ain't feelin' alright, Shera. You hungry, or not?" His lips twisted into a lop sided frown. If anyone needed a vacation, damn, it was her.
"Yes, I'm hungry." Shera would have rolled her eyes if they didn't ache in their sockets. She did something Cid didn't anticipate, and stepped forward to press her face into his lower chest. Her arms found and wrapped around his middle. Shera's shoulders rose. Slowly, they sank with an exaggerated, drawn out groan.
"Alright, alright..." Cid nervously placed one hand on the small of her back and rubbed. His other arm found her shoulders and held her for a moment. "I get it." Bunching up some of his softer side, the hand over her shoulders crept upward to gingerly ruffle the hair draped over the back of Shera's neck. His rough knuckles massaged the soft tapering at her nape. The house was quiet while they held one another.
"What did you order?" Shera's voice was muffled in his work shirt. She moved her head to the side; cheek gracelessly squashed. She was pouting because she was tired, and Cid certainly didn't blame her for it.
"You like chow mein, right? I got you one of them dinner boxes." Cid figured he'd start out small. He had one hell of a list of things to make up for.
"Aw, Cid." Shera smiled just a bit. It was one of her quieter grins. "That's very sweet. Thank you."
"Why don't you ah," the vibration of her soft voice was fueling the fluttering in Cid's stomach "go n' sit down. I'll jus' bring it to you." He granted her back a firm pat. Cid was a little reluctant to let her go.
III.
The movie was ending. A rather dumb movie, actually. Cid didn't enjoy it very much, but Shera's occasional laugh made it alright.
They bad talked it and ate more than they watched, and it was a relief to nibble on a bit of normalcy. The lights in the house were off, aside from the lamp on the side table. Neither of them couldn't be bothered to answer a number they didn't recognize when the phone rang. After all the take out was gone, they both ate from a tub of ice cream from the fridge. It wasn't until only their spoons were left that Cid had a mind to check the time. It was dark out. Late...
Her glasses were crooked on her face. Shera had laid her head on his shoulder while they sat in front of the TV on the couch. She raised up maybe once to take a pain pill or two. Cid could tell in soft warmth , and gentle breathing that she was relaxed. He really didn't want to have to bother her.
"It's gettin' late, Shera." Which was code for 'I have to go to sleep soon'. He knew she knew that.
"You're probably right." She folded her legs out from his lap. Shera gathered her hair in her hands and tied the long brown strands back in her usual pony tail. Eating had perked her up a bit; a busy-body look set on her face. She had slept enough during the day to be able to watch over Cid tonight. "Let me shower first."
IV.
Cid didn't have much to do while he waited. He made sure most of the doors were locked, and loitered before the back door for a long while; staring out into the darkness of the yard. With a low sound, similar to the sputter of a horse, he stepped out to poke his head in the deep freezer on the other side of the back porch. Cloud and Barret left behind hearty slabs and side stacks of ribs, nearly twenty pounds of ground meat, and ten long rolls of unseasoned sausages. What the fuck. Was he going to have to pay them back for this, too?!
Grumbling under his breath and using the strength of his arms, Cid dragged a heavy stack from the creaky storage unit and laid it out over the grass. Kneeling, he dug a carpenter's knife from one of his pants pockets and began to tear at the plastic packaging. The porch light snapped on. He could hear Shera pad down the creaky, wooden steps behind him. Cid paused for a moment to watch her cross to where he was. She'd stolen another one of his shirts out of his room, tugged on some worn out jeans, and her work boots. She placed her hand on his shoulder. He could smell her blackberry body wash from her forearm.
"You think this'll be enough?" Cid asked while drawing to his feet. He stuffed his knife back in his pocket, and noticed Shera had brought some things out with her. A lighter, for one. Woman knew him too damn well. She had some extra pants (for him), one of Cid's spears, a worn out blanket, and her bag with some additional items.
"With the powder it will." Shera dipped her head in an affirmative nod.
"Ah, shit, that's right." Cid had almost forgot. Where'd he put that goddman sack? "How much should I sprinkle on?"
"Maybe a cup or so? They really didn't tell me." Shera shrugged her shoulders. She didn't have a clue, but having some significant amount was crucial to keeping Cid tame while he slept.
"I'll figure it out." Cid passed her on his way back to the inside of the house. The light snapped off, drenching the area in soft moonlight. The porch door groaned and snapped shut behind him. He was gone for a short while; returning with a cup of the bitter SOLDIER's powder to toss out over the meat he'd opened. The Captain could feel in his gut that it was going to become some sort of odd ritual from now, until Reeve's illegal lackeys could conjure some meds...if they could conjure some meds.
Shera placed the few items she had out a yard or two off to the side and unrolled the blanket she'd taken from a closet. She wondered if she needed to have anything else on hand. She had her cellphone (she made sure it was charged just in case anything should happen), and other items to keep herself and her hound occupied. Sending Nanaki a short message, Shera plopped down on the mat and dug through her personal bag. When she brought her attention out from the depths of her carrier sack, Cid had sank down as well. He was somewhat over her; taking off his boots, and then his shirt.
"What are you doing...?" Shera leaned out of the way. There was just enough light from above to see her brown eyebrows arch above her glasses.
"I thought you stopped askin' dumb questions last year." Cid stood up on his knees to unbuckle his belt and pull down the fly of his pants. "I like this shirt. Like these pants, too." When they were off, he chucked them in Shera's direction.
"You were standing over me." Her face scrunched and she yanked the green fabric of his pants down from her chest. She tried not to eye Cid, or his underwear. "You don't like those?" Shera was bold enough to ask.
Cid glanced down at himself, and then met the innocence Shera was trying to forge with a squint. "Ain't my fault yer' a pervert." He snatched his pants back and dug around again in the pockets.
"I'm not a pervert?" Shera tugged what she assumed he was looking for from behind his ear, and then took his goggles off all together. "It's where you always put it, Captain." She handed Cid the box of cigarettes, but not his head gear. She strapped them to her head instead; positioning the leather behind her bangs like a band.
"Then why'd you ask, eh?" Cid took a cigarette by the filter. He cupped his hand over the spark of the lighter she had given him.
"I think it was a logical question."
"Logical my ass. Sounds like someone wanted a private show." He took a long drag and puffed out a quivering ring. Cid's eyes were fixed on the pearly, gibbous moon above. It appeared to be waning to a quarter.
"Oh, please." She gave his side a playful shove and glanced up to the stars with him. "Like I haven't seen you naked."
"I get it. M' irresistible." Cid had a dumb grin on his face. "Y'know what, babe? Ten gil for a lap dance. Just for you. I'll let you stick it under my thong." He winked and Shera was certainly well enough now to roll her eyes.
"Are you saying you own a th—" She bucked her shoulder when his lips unexpectedly attacked her neck. Shera snorted and fidgeted. Cid was blowing raspberries.
"W-would you—" she snapped her eyes shut and wheezed "Would you cut it out?! You're supposed to be going to sleep!" All of her laughing was making her ribs ache. Shera slapped her hand against the side of Cid's neck and tried to steady herself on his shoulders.
"Well, alright then. She don' want me to take my drawers off." Cid switched his cigarette to his other hand. Shera's flailing almost put it out.
The assault on her neck ceased. The yard grew silent again, but Cid's closeness hadn't moved. Shera cracked open her eyes just a bit. Her housemate's lips brushed her cheek in a soft kiss. She could feel and smell that he had shaved. Moving her head a bit brought the coolness of his breathing to her nostrils. The fresh scent of tobacco flooded her senses, but his cigarette was smothered till the pulsing had vanished in the dirt. The space between their mouths disappeared. It was another sweet relief, and they savored it until Cid was drowsy.
I love you. Goodnight.
V.
"You're a big baby. Hmm, yes?" The sound of her pat was deep, and hollow on his side "A big, hairy child..." That wasn't too far from how Cid normally was. Tonight, he was being particularly cooperative. It was a little unsettling to watch Cid eat (he was upon the meat he'd prepared immediately with bared teeth), but aside from that, he was satisfied, he didn't wonder about, and he didn't make much noise. Cid laid himself down before the porch. Currently, he rested back down, and belly up in the grass. Shera almost forgot that he was...frightening.
He did demand to be given attention, though (that wasn't out of the Captain's character either). Cid followed after Shera's hand; unaware of his own strength. In pursuing her petting, he often bumped her over. He wasn't very mindful of his tail either, not like Nanaki. But compared to the first few encounters with Cid's transformations, Shera didn't mind landing on her bottom, or water-hosing out a singe or two. Finally. Tonight felt like it was going to be relatively pleasant.
"Big baby..." Shera unknowingly cooed. She leaned over to scratch beneath Cid's chin. His hard, stubby whiskers poked at the dime sized callouses on the insides of her knuckles until he ripped his head away. He rolled and twisted himself in the late night dew that was settling in the grass. Whatever he was, he was a very odd fragment of Cid. If he could be considered that. Some things that Cid did while he was asleep struck her as totally foreign, and some things were highly familiar. His quietness was one thing. Always so quiet. She could look him in his Mako tampered eyes and tell he was thinking. She could call his name, and he would respond with his attention. Shera could make some abstract motion, and he could infer what she wanted from him.
As of her own usual nature, Shera was drawn into her thoughts again. That meant something, right? He could comprehend her. To some extent Cid knew who she was. It occurred to Shera, that quite possibly, Cid could utilize a voice. How aware of himself was he? Was there a possibility that he could become more aware than he was now? The more questions Shera asked herself, the more bothered she became. She bumped the water barrel she had been using for Cid out of way (along with pressing thoughts) after realizing it was empty. The laser pointer she had gotten from Cait Sith was taken from her bag and clicked on. She waggled it back and forth a yard or so away, anticipating Cid rearing up and tearing after it. How silly.
He didn't grant the transparent red dot his attention, though. Cid barked (she had no idea he could) and it was loud enough to nearly spook her from her skin. His ears were up and alert and the territorial growl that came from somewhere low in his chest instantly made her nervous.
"Cid, sh!" Shera tossed the pointer to the grass beside her tipped over bag and tried to figure out where he was narrowing his eyes and twitching nose.
Something loudly clattered off to the side of their neighbor's house not too far away. "Shh..." Shera firmly patted the side of Cid's neck "stay here. Stay." Shera crept away to get a better look. God, she hoped he would actually stay in place. She was lucky that Cid wasn't following her.
VI.
Slowly taking the spear propped up on the porch railing. Shera squinted through the dark. A hooded figure was making their way around the other side of the widow's home. They lingered before the gashes in the cottage paneling, before tip-toeing up and coming face to face with Shera on the small square of yard between their houses. They seemed to be just as panicked as her and clumsily flickered on a flashlight.
"H-hey?" Shera switched the spear to her other hand so she could hold her dominant one over her eyes. The flashlight cast a glare over the lenses of her glasses.
"Shera? What the hell are you doing out?!" Tamar yanked off her jacket hood and hissed. She put her flashlight away.
"What the hell are you doing out?!" Shera groaned. The goddamn town reporter. Just. Great! "...are you taking pictures?" At night?
"My job! Don't question me, you don't know anything about aesthetic." She placed her hands on her hips and cleared grit that would never really go away from her throat. Tamar attempted to act casual. Shera catching her snooping wasn't totally a bad thing. "What are you doing? It's late, Ms. Joules."
"I can't sleep. That's all. I've been out by myself." Shera lied.
"Oh, really?" Tamar sauntered over. "You're up. I'm up. The moon is...kind of full. Mind if I ask you a few questions? Might help you sleep."
Shera gritted her teeth behind her polite smile. "That's lovely, but I should be getting back to the house. I was just coming out to see what the noise was."
"Well, I'm awful sorry I frightened you. Got your big boy's pointy stick and everything." Tamar swiftly looped her arm in Shera's, and she knew her fate was sealed. Shera wanted to kick herself.
"I'll help you back to your porch and we can have a nice sit down. It won't take too long, I promise." Tamar granted the fakest, shit eating grin Shera had ever seen.
"Ms. Tamar, really, it's late I was just going to go back to—" They were close to the back yard of the house now. The empty launch pad was judging them both from above, and if it had a head, it would shake it.
"Don't you worry about a thing! I'll be sure to site you in the up and coming article. You can tell me your preferred name. I can include you right after I showcase the Head Honcho," Tamar was nosily looking over the mess of hair over the yard, and was bold enough to walk right up the porch and snap on the light "and your cigarette-stick-up-the-ass boyfriend." She muttered the last part. Her fake grin returned when she managed to force Shera down on the steps.
"Uh..." On the inside, Shera was panicking. Heart racing. It was fortunate, and highly unfortunate that Cid was nowhere to be seen.
Tamar fumbled with her recorder "July seventeenth, two thirty two o'clock AM, the captain's quarters with Shera Highwind, pardon me, Joules" she cleared her throat "first question, Ah..." The town reporter squinted.
"Yes?" Shera's eyes were elsewhere. She was scanning the distant treeline.
"Do you and Cap get a dog...?" She noticed all the hair in Shera's clothes. With the porch light on, she could see that the clumps were everywhere. Shera also smelled...peculiar.
"No." Shera curtly answered. She was still distractedly scanning for any sign of Cid.
"You're covered in dog hair?" Tamar was almost disgusted.
"Not a dog, you see one of the Captain's friends is a canyon beast from far past Corel. He was...visiting." Shera's attention refocused and she waved off the 'confusion' with a jingly little laugh.
"A canyon beast?" Tamar pursed her lips. "Does this 'friend' of his have anything to do with the mysterious creature that's terrorized Rocket Town this past month?"
"Ah...no, no he doesn't. He's rather tame." Shera awkwardly answered. She really wanted Tamar to go away.
"You had first hand account of sighting the creature, didn't you? I have a type up from the recent town meeting of the approximations you gave. What did it look like? What did it want?" Tamar narrowed her eyes further. She was picking up on Shera's nervousness and her appearance. The she-mechanic appeared disheveled and sweaty. She obviously wasn't wearing clothes that belonged to her either.
"It looked like a large...canine. With glowing eyes and sharp teeth," she really didn't want to offer information, for fear of being cross examined, but Shera didn't have much of a choice "I think it was looking for something to eat, but the Captain and I don't own any pets. It didn't have luck here."
"There was also a vote that permitted Captain Highwind and the vigilante group AVALANCHE to deal with the monster problem. How did that go, exactly? Do you know?" Tamar's eyes drifted to some of the other items in the yard. There was a blanket laid out to the side. She could make out a bag. A suggestive metal wand in the grass. And clothes? A shirt, a man's boots, pants, and...underwear. Smelled like she disturbed some hanky panky. Oh my. Captain must have bolted before she got there.
"They were here for a few days, but it didn't appear for a long while. They caught it in a snare around the very back of the woods when it appeared again. It went well. They had it taken away as far as I know." Shera tapped her foot; expressing her impatience.
"You sure you don't have any additional details you would like to share? Any pictures? Any other people I can contact about it, hm~?" Tamar's mouth tugged into a smug smirk.
"Wish I could help, but I don't have anything else." Shera sighed in relief when she snapped her recorder off and stood.
"Well, thank you anyway, Ms. Joules." She drummed polished, bright pink finger nails against the porch railing. "Captain awake?" That's who she really wanted to talk to.
''No, he's asleep. I really don't want to wake him." Shera barred Tamar from coming back up the steps. "I really need to get to bed. It's been nice speaking with you. Have a nice night, Ms. Tamar!" Shera snapped off the light and slipped right behind the back door. Go away. Go away. Go away.
"Mm hn. Night night." And Tamar left.
Not before poking her nose in what was on the blanket in the yard, of course. The file folder hanging out of Shera's bag caught her eye after all of Cid's discarded clothes. Didn't notice it on the porch. "REM Hound?" A dog...She gasped...no, an experiment. The reporter snapped it right up and wedged it under her arm. Jackpot.
VII.
"Shit! Shit! Shit!" Shera didn't wait more than ten minutes after Tamar left to make sure she was gone. She ran out from the house, gritting her teeth for the throb in her ribs, and scrambled for her cell phone. "Cid?!" She hissed out really, really hoping that he was still near by. The first thought she had was to dial Nanaki (and lend her ear for any screams). If he was gone, they were going to have to track him down. Shera wanted to go looking for her hound herself, but she knew better. The longer she waited though...who knows where he had run off to in the time that had passed.
"I'm a mile or so out in the valley." Nanaki's voice crackled on the other end of the speaker. "I'll be there as soon as I can. Dial Barret just in case. I heard he was already on his way to check on you."
"I'm going to check the immediate area some more for him. I'm so sorry. I had an unexpected visitor that I think ran him off." Shera sighed. She had begun to pace.
"It's alright. Please be safe. Call me if anything happens." She could hear the phone being snapped up in Nanaki's teeth. The call ended.
VIII.
It truly was a mystery this time. No one screamed in the dead of night. There wasn't a trail of blood to follow. They even stopped being able to spot wads of Cid's hair in the thickets that spotted the woods. Nanaki had made it to Rocket Town within an hour, and it took another two to follow Cid's scent to an unfamiliar bend in the creek. It couldn't be picked up again on the other side. The water had made it hard for Nanaki's nose discern the direction he'd gone in. Paw prints were their second option, but it hadn't rained much this Summer, and the ground far past the moisture of the residential yard had hardened.
Nanaki lifted his head to the brightening horizon and intuitively howled. Shera's heartbeat finally had a chance to slow when there was a response. A reply, from no sure direction, but they both took the fact that Cid wasn't extremely far away in stride.
Dawn broke when Nanaki howled again. The deep response was closer. So Cid was coming back?
Indeed he was, and he did; with something in his mouth.
"Oh my god..." Shera held a hand to her forehead to block out the rays of morning light cast from the sun. Cid emerged, almost casually, from the woods. Tree limbs snapped and bushes were mowed down. He didn't have a little something in his mouth. He was dragging a lengthy metal object, caked with dirt, at least ten or fifteen feet long, several more feet wide, by one end as if it were a throwing stick. Panting, Cid ended his venture, with Shera in sight. She and Nanaki stood dumbstruck in the field before the launch pad, not to far off from where the Tiny Broncho had been stationed for repairs. He paused, tail leisurely swatting behind him. Cid dropped the large scale object and it fell with a mighty thumb and screech to patch of ground before Shera's feet. The vibration rattled her bones. Cid trotted around, and sought out Shera's hand as if he had never left and absolutely nothing was wrong.
"What in the world is this?" Nanaki sniffed at it. He was highly confused. All the dirt the metal mass was covered in made it hard to discern.
"This..." Shera righted her glasses with bitterly pressed lips "this is a propeller."
Nanaki plopped down on his haunches with an exasperated snort. "You look like your cat came home after two weeks."
"Cats bring home mice, Nanaki." She passed a very throaty half groan, half sigh. "Good boy, Cid."