New Life's Beginning
The eleven warriors and Cosmos entered the front door to get a better look at the inside. Directly in front of them was a staircase leading to the second floor, presumably where the bedrooms were. On the left of the staircase was a small living room, just enough for the twelve housemates to walk around in, along with four three-seater sofas making a pyramid shape, with a television at the bottom. On the right of the staircase was a dining area, with a long table with six chairs on either side of it, with an extra chair at the head, possibly where Cosmos will sit. And both the living room and dining room had a doorway leading to a kitchen. Put together, the house was big enough for the twelve to live in.
"I think it's perfect for this situation." Cecil said.
"How did you get a house this big, Cosmos?" Bartz asked the Goddess.
"I bet you did a few break-ins, huh?" Zidane said. Cosmos smiled.
"No, young one." Cosmos said to the young tailed-thief. "You can be surprised what a Goddess, such as I, can do."
"I think we better take a look around." Cloud said, heading to the living room, while the others scattered.
"I'll go check the rooms upstairs." Terra insisted, heading upstairs. Shantotto followed Terra, proving it difficult to climb the stairs with her short height. Every time she failed to climb a step, she would curse madly at the stairs.
"Stairs, Shantotto's greatest weakness." Tidus laughed.
"Silence, you!" Shantotto barked for the Blitzball star.
"Want me to kick her up?" Asked Tidus to Cosmos. But before Cosmos could say "no", Terra arrived from upstairs, with a confused look on her face.
"Ummm, Cosmos. There are only four bedrooms and one bathroom." She said to the Goddess.
"I am sorry, dear one." She began. "I had to create a house which would naturally blend with the other houses in the area, otherwise we will draw attention. One sacrifice was the limited number of bathrooms and bedromms." Terra gave a look of sadness. Cosmos would no doubtedly sleep in one room, proven that one room had a single bed. So she would have to sleep with possibly three of the men.
"I think it's best if we discuss who sleeps where before it's too late." Terra decided. On hearing that, everyone returned to the entrance hall.
"Three bedrooms between eleven people is problematic." The Warrior of Light said.
"Especially for the girls of the team." Firion added.
"I am sorry for bringing this onto you." Cosmos apoligized.
"If I may..." Terra interjected. "I would like to pick the child, Cloud and Shantotto to share a room with." Onion Knight looked shocked at this.
"Why me?" Asked Cloud.
"I know you really "aren't interested" either way." Terra said, trying to impersonate Cloud's rough voice. Cloud merely 'hmphed'. "Shantotto is a woman, so I doubt she won't mind." Shantotto laughed.
"I suppose you have it figured out, girl." She said.
"And ummm..." Terra said, pausing to Onion Knight. "I...guess I trust him." The child smiled at this. "Is that okay?"
"Of course it is." Onion Knight said with happiness at Terra's words. "It only means I can protect you at all hours." Terra gave a happy smile.
"Well, I guess that's the ladies dealt with." Zidane said. "What about the rest of us?"
"Draw straws?" Suggested Cecil.
"Well, I'm sticking with Zidane." Bartz said. "Me and him are buddies."
"Well said, buddy!" Zidane said. "Hey, Squall, feel like joining?" Squall, who wasn't interested in the conversation, looked to the smiling, overexcited youngsters.
"I suppose." He mumbled, resuming his own business.
"Sweet!" Yelled the two.
"Something tells me they're going to have a fun time in the late hours." Firion said.
"I presume that leaves the rest of us to share the last remaining room." The Warrior of Light said, looking at Tidus, Firion and Cecil.
"Sounds good to me." Tidus said.
"But what about the bathroom?" Asked Terra. "It will be a problem if we all need to take a shower or even wash our hands."
"First come, first serve?" Asked Tidus.
"I don't think that would work." Cecil said.
"There's a shower and a bath, so two can go at the same time." Informed Terra.
"Looks like we'll have to share if things are meant to be civilised." Firion said with hesitance.
"It is obvious." Shantotto said. "The girl and I shall have the bathing room on first day break. Should we consider a morning to sleep in, well, that makes you losers." The ten males looked at themselves with disgust over Shantotto's arrogance.
"It's better than sharing with Terra, I suppose." Cloud said.
"Now that we have the bedroom and bathroom stuff out of the way..." Onion Knight interjected. "What will we do now?" But then, Cosmos began walking up the stairs.
"Where are you going, Cosmos?" Asked Cecil.
"I need rest. My body has grown weary transporting you here." She said. "I would love to join you in your various activities, but as long as I exist in this realm, overuse of my powers comes at a price."
"Well, night night." Tidus said in encouragement. She gave one last smile, before departing to the second floor.
"I believe it wise to learn more about our surroundings on the outside." The Warrior of Light said.
"I agree. This realm may have different laws that if we don't abide by can lead us into trouble." Terra said.
"One of them may be the prohibition of weapons." Cloud said, laying down his Buster Sword under the stairs.
"That's just stupid." The Onion Knight said, putting down his yellow and blue decorated rapier in the same place.
"I guess living in this world comes at a price." Firion said, putting down his axe, sword, lance, dual knives, shield, bow and rod. "Although, not so heavy, as a matter of fact."
"It's best if six looks around while five stays here." Squall proposed. "If we all go, then Cosmos will be defenseless."
"Good point." Said Bartz. "Well, I'm up for an adventure."
"You can count me in too." Zidane said.
"I guess I can go too." Onion Knight said.
"I would like to come too." Terra said. "Do you want to come too, Cloud?"
"I guess..." Cloud muttered. "I do know a few things about the modern world."
"I will accompany you!" Shantotto said. "I can't let you losers wander around." The other party members sighed in annoyance.
"Should we go?" Asked Zidane. The others nodded and they all went their way.
Meanwhile, deep in the world of conflict, the evil Emperor stood in the Crystal World, having scoured it a thousand times for Firion.
"This is useless!" He barked. "How is it possible that they have evaded my grasp! I should have at least found one of them by now!!" In his anger, he used his staff to destroy a crystal pillar.
"Calm down..." Spoke a familar voice. The Emperor turned to see Sephiroth.
"You...!" The Emperor snarled.
"Still frustrated over your loss, are you?" Asked Sephiroth.
"Aren't you?!" The Emperor yelled.
"Hmph. No. My adversary, Cloud, I will always know where he is." Sephiroth continued.
"Does that mean you know where his companions are hiding?" The Emperor ordered.
"I never said that."
"No matter! Tell me how I can find my adversary! Tell me how to find that rat, Firion!" The Emperor ordered.
"Do you hate him?" Asked Sephiroth.
"Hate him? I despise his very scent! I take great pride in showing him pain! There's not a greater joy than showing him my wrath!" The Emperor yelled in passion. Sephiroth 'hmphed' and walked away.
"That is why, you will never find him..." He ended, taking his leave, leaving the Emperor baffled at Sephiroth's logic.
The six adventurers travelled through the suburbs, admiring the scenery as they went.
"Told you this place was peaceful." Bartz said.
"We'll need to get to the city if we're really to learn of our environment." Cloud said, looking to the tall skyscrapers not too far away.
"Yeah, the city's where all the big bucks are." Zidane said.
"How do we get there?" Asked Terra.
"I can run there." Onion Knight said in high spirit.
"We don't wanna attract attention." Said Cloud. "Wait here, I got an idea." Quickly, Cloud hurried back to their home.
"He better have some idea, because I am not walking." Shantotto mocked.
"Cloud's a tough guy, but he's also a good thinker." The Onion Knight said. "Much like myself." A few seconds later, on the road came a large black car with three rows of two seats, suitable for the six to travel, and behind the wheel was Cloud.
"Hop in." He said, after rolling down the window.
"What is that large contraption?!" Asked Bartz in astonishment.
"It's a car." Cloud replied. "A good source of transport."
"How did you get it?" Asked Zidane. Cloud hesitated slightly.
"I asked Cosmos." He replied. The others grew anxious.
"What were you thinking?" Asked the Onion Knight. "You know Cosmos is trying to rest!"
"I asked her if it was possible once her power was restored. She said yes, and made it anyway." Cloud explained. "She also said trivial things such as making a mechanism appear before her accumulated one billionth of her overall prowess, which is nothing to her."
"Still, it was very unthoughtful of you." Terra said.
"It hardly matters." Shantotto said, entering the car beside Cloud. "What's done is done, and we have our transport."
"I guess." Zidane said, entering the back seats with Bartz, while Terra and Onion Knight sat together in the middle row.
"You should fasten your seatbelts." Cloud warned. "I like to drive fast." Suddenly, the car began to speed as fast as possible in the direction of the city. Bartz and Zidane were sucked to the back of their seats with force from the speed they were going at. Terra and Onion Knight were clinging for dear life, should they have an accident. Shantotto on the other hand was laughing with delight.
"Very good power this machine possesses! You're not much of a loser to control it's power!"
"Slow down!" Onion Knight called.
"I warned you." Cloud said. Ten minutes later, they were in the outskirts of the city, and Cloud did a massive swerve to a parking spot, leaving everyone except the driver and Shantotta in pieces.
"I rode Chocobos that were slower..." Bartz panted.
"I rode airships that were slower..." Zidane panted.
"Can we please...get out?" Asked Terra. Soon the six were out of the car and admiring the skyscrapers around them.
"Amazing..." the Onion Knight complimented.
"So how do we find out more about this world?" Asked Zidane. "Other than it's got big towers." Suddenly, Cloud grabbed Zidane's tail, making him jolt in surprise and pain. "Wai-what are you..." But Cloud stuffed the tail under Zidane's shirt, away from sight.
"Regular people don't have tails." He said. Cloud then pointed to a small girl not so far that had her eyes on Zidane's tail.
"Ahh, let her look!" Zidane said with a carefree nature. "I don't care what people think of this beaut." Before he could take it back out, Bartz grabbed his wrist before he could do so.
"They're right." Bartz said sternly. "If people see you have a tail, they'd think you were a freakshow, or something." Zidane gave a saddened look to his good friend, but Bartz gave him a small pat on the shoulder. "Ahhh, don't take it like that! You can show it off as much as you want when we get back." Zidane cheered up a little.
"Thanks." Zidane said in a light-hearted tone.
"Can we get a move on?!" Yelled Shantotto. "Monkey boy's tail issues are a minor problem compared to my aching feet!" And with that, they headed out, ever eager to explore the new environment they have discovered.