Chapter 97, εуλ0019

Getting to the village of Gongaga was itself a bit of a journey, to put iit lightly. Gongaga had flatly refused to allow the train to run through the jungle; its terminus was the Corel airport. From there, Gongaga had wanted people to arrive only on foot or via chocobo. The compromise was small, four-seater open taxis – electric powered, non-polluting, and strictly prohibited from veering off the paths.

(Barret had not yet made it to Gongaga with the new biofuels; Marlene hoped Gongaga would be willing to accept them. After the reactor disaster, she could hardly blame them for being suspicious of new technology.)

As their driver puttered through the jungle, jouncing Elmyra and Marlene in the back, Marlene wondered yet again if flying might have been better. The Gongaga airport was closer to the town, but there were no services provided there; they would have had to hike through the jungle. Not to mention planes arriving were rare; she would likely have had to call Cid, and she didn't want more people to know about this trip than were absolutely necessary.

The exception was Cissnei. Marlene had snuck the former Turk's phone number out of Cloud's PHS, but Elmyra was the one who made the call and got the directions both to Cissnei's house (where they were invited to stay) and to their ultimate destination.

Cissnei herself had half-begged to come, but Marlene had firmly vetoed that suggestion. She simply wasn't ready to deal with the woman; she couldn't deny she harbored a streak of resentment. Yes, Cissnei had helped her father and Cloud escape… but she could have done so much more. She could have told Cloud the truth. What difference might it have made? Objectively speaking, Marlene knew things might have turned out worse, but that didn't stop her feelings.

Speaking of Cloud… He would have been so motion-sick by now, Marlene silently snickered as they hit yet another bump. He'd be leaving a trail of organic, environmentally correct vomit the whole way.

They had fortunately gotten an early start, but it had been several hours on the train traveling from lush Costa through the wastes of the Corel desert, then another couple hours through the jungle. It was late afternoon, nearing dusk, when they finally dismounted at the north gate of Gongaga proper.

Marlene's head whipped sharply to the southeast as they entered. "What is it?" Elmyra asked.

"The reactor," she replied. "I can still sense the polluted mako from it. But there's also a lot of pure Lifestream here. The Planet is healing."

Elmyra said nothing, merely reached down to squeeze her granddaughter's hand.

Cissnei's house was the closest; they took advantage to drop off their minimal luggage, one smallish bag each. "Do you want to take a break?" Elmyra asked. "Maybe take a shower? Change out of our travel clothes? Elmyra wore a simple T-shirt and jeans, having removed her light jacket hours before; Marlene, a simple long-sleeved purple dress with brown boots. The question Elmyra was asking, though, was are you sure? Giving Marlene her last chance to back out.

Marlene smoothed her dress unnecessarily, a nervous fidget. "No. Let's do this right away."

Just a short walk across the village, and they were knocking on the door Cissnei had directed them to. A woman peeked her head out.

"Mrs. Fair?" Elmyra asked.

"Yes?" Zack's mother replied.

"I'm Elmyra Gainsborough. We've actually come all the way from Edge to see… well, you. May we come in?"

Mrs. Fair looked surprised, but motioned them warmly inside. Mr. Fair was sitting at the table. He shook their hands in welcome.

Elmyra began uncertainly. "This is kind of awkward," she excused herself. "You had a son…"

"He's gone," Mrs. Fair said. "It that's what you were worried about telling us, it's okay. A woman from Shinra – "

"Cissnei," Marlene interrupted. "We know her – "

"You do?" Mrs. Fair asked. "Interesting. Anyways, she came and told us. Died in battle protecting a friend. Went out a hero." She paused. "If he had to go, that's the way he would have wanted it."

Marlene and Elmyra exchanged a look. Did the Fairs need to know about Hojo? The experiments? They locked eyes and agreed – best to let whatever story Cissnei had told them stand.

"Well. There's a little more that we have to tell you." Mrs. Fair had motioned to a chair, but they remained standing. Marlene shifted from foot to foot. "I couldn't have children with my husband. But twenty-seven years ago, the same time I lost him… I gained my adoptive daughter, Aerith. I found her orphaned at the train station, and I took her home. Had her in my life for fifteen years, but now she's gone too… so I know how you feel…" Elmyra choked up, unable to go on.

Mrs. Fair reached out her hand to the other woman. "I'm sorry. It never really goes away, does it?"

Elmyra nodded; slowly she recovered herself. "It really doesn't, but there's more to the story. When Aerith was sixteen, she met your son Zack. They fell in love…"

Mr. Fair brightened, and Mrs. Fair clapped her hands in delight. "The girlfriend he wrote us about!"

"She came through here once not long before she passed," Elmyra added. "A young woman in pink…"

"So that was her," Mr. Fair finally spoke. "We had… kind of a weird feeling…" His voice grew soft. "I'm glad we got to meet her at least once."

Elmyra nodded. "Aerith and Zack… things happened between them. And… well." Elmyra decided to delay no more; she motioned Marlene to step forward. "This is Marlene Wallace. My granddaughter… and yours."

Mrs. Fair's eyes grew wide in disbelief; but a moment later, she was laughing, crying, throwing her arms around Marlen. Mr. Fair had stood; tears visibly shone. "Can this really be?" his wife asked. "We really have a granddaughter? Zack became a father?"

"He did," Elmyra affirmed. "She looks mostly like Aerith…"

"…but we can see our boy too," finished Mr. Fair.

"It's there, but you have to look for it," Marlene supplied. "I looked a little more like him when I was younger." She squeezed Mrs. Fair tightly, only continuing once they separated. "When he died… he was trying to make it back to my mom after four years apart."

"So you never –" Mr. Fair asked, but Marlene quickly answered. "Not exactly."

She took a deep breath; every time she revealed this to someone new, it made her feel a touch more vulnerable. "My mother… she was a Cetra. You know, like the rumors that are going around?"

"We know about the Cetra," Mr. Fair assured her. "The Gongagans are – "

"Descendants of the Cetra," Marlene agreed. "So my dad might even have had some Cetra in his blood. It's not clear. But he was a SOLDIER, and that seems to count for something."

Her eyes went from Mrs. to Mr. and back again. "I can talk to Mom and Dad. Over the Lifestream." She had their absolute attention now as she fumbled through her pockets for a precious sheet of paper. "I have a letter. Kind of. Dad had to dictate it and then I had to write it down from memory, but I think I got it all." She unfolded the wrinkles, and began.

"Dear Mom and Dad,

I'm not sure how to begin. If you're hearing this, you've met Marlene. She's a great kid. (Marlene could feel herself blushing.) Anyways… I'm sorry I didn't write more. Marlene can explain it all if you want. But maybe not. It's not a very happy story.

I'd really rather talk about Aerith. I literally fell into her life and it was love at first sight. I just knew she was the one. She was kinda coy at first, but she told me later that she felt the same.

Shinra always hung over our heads. Maybe we were doomed from the start. As a Cetra, she was pursued by the company, and of course I worked for them. I dreamed of marrying her, taking her somewhere safe. But now I know that would never have worked.

I didn't know Aerith was pregnant. She said the Planet told her to conceive, but… things happened before she was able to tell me. What she decided to do… Well, Marlene will explain that too. About Barret, and Tifa, and Cloud. You've met them too, but I hope you get the chance to get to know them better. They're really important to Marlene and Aerith and me. Cloud was one of my best friends… he's the one I, well… died for.

So don't worry about me. Aerith and I are happy here together; we'll see you when you rejoin the Planet. In the meantime, Marlene can carry messages. Not the ideal mail system, but hey, it's what we have.

Love always,

Your son,

Zack."

Mrs. Fair was openly crying, having produced a handkerchief from somewhere. "I can hear his voice in that letter," she sobbed. "That's Zack. That's our son."

Mr. Fair had put his arms around his wife's shoulders. "Elmyra. Marlene. Please stay for dinner. We want to ask you so much more." He waved to the living room beyond. "In the meantime, make yourselves at home."

Marlene took a tentative step forward. There were photos on the mantel; her eyes traveled over them, until one arrested her gaze and she gasped in surprise. She picked it up for a closer look. "My dad had brown eyes?"

Mrs. Fair looked confused. "He doesn't now?"

"Bright blue. From the SOLDIER treatments. It only happens sometimes – and he never brought it up." It filled in a missing piece, though – she'd wondered how blue- and green-eyed parents could have made a brown-eyed child, but now it made sense. One more reassurance that her parentage was true. The brown of her own eyes covered up somewhat the soft glow that shone bright in the eyes of her parents, and Cloud.

Marlene turned to both the Fairs. "I'm looking forward to dinner. We have so much to talk about."

Dinner was a long affair, stretching through the evening. The appetite of Zack's parents for information about their son, Aerith, herself was insatiable. They'd desperately wanted to meet her real-life parents as well; she'd had to tell them that they might be able to meet Barret sooner rather than later, but it would be a bit longer for Cloud and Tifa.

The Fairs would have gladly let them stay as long as they wanted, but possibly seeing the strain it was putting on Marlene, they'd agreed a couple days would be fine. She'd need the R in Costa del Sol afterward. In fact, just the events of the evening, following on a long day, were starting to grate on Marlene, putting her nerves on edge.

"I think… I need a little air," she told the Fairs. "Do you mind if I take a short walk?"

"Of course, dear. Take your time," Mrs. Fair said. "It's safe here, but still… be careful."

"I'll be fine," she assured them, fingering her bracelet for comfort. Ice, Time, and Esuna were loaded into it today.

"I'll stay here," Elmyra offered. "Meet back at Cissnei's house?" Marlene nodded, and departed.

She stepped outside into full night. The shushed sounds of the village barely covered those from the forest beyond, with the exception of the local saloon; even that was positively tranquil compared to nearly every other bar, including the well-behaved Seventh Heaven. Oil-lit torches lit the paths, but even without them she had the light of the full moon to go by.

And the stars. Endless swathes of stars.

She walked aimlessly at first, thinking. Was her father part Cetra? Aerith didn't seem to think so, but even the tiniest part might have helped him become a SOLDIER. Might support why her mother thought Marlene was more powerful than she herself had been at the same age.

She hadn't realized where she was heading until she was almost there. The memorial Cissnei had mentioned that Zack's parents had described. She reached the top of the small hill to find an overlook, bordered in flowers. In the distance was the remains of the Gongaga reactor; too dark to see, but it was there. And crowning the hill was a small overlook, at the center of which stood a stone. Inscribed on it were the names of those killed in the disaster. A single tombstone for an entire village.

Marlene knelt, carefully fanning her skirt. Respectfully, she ran her finger over the etched names. These were her people too.

This should have been her father's grave… not some dried-out cliff. Never mind that Zack assured her that the Lifestream had absorbed him whole, leaving no body to rot – or for Shinra to desecrate. ("Like a final eff-you to the company," Marlene had suggested, making Zack laugh.) But regardless, it had been the place where he had died. She realized, to her surprise, that she had never visited there; she'd only ever been there on an errand, when after Meteorfall Cloud had left the Buster Sword there. But once he'd retrieved it and placed it in the church, she'd preferred to go there instead.

It was a place Denzel often went to with Cloud when they needed to talk. Maybe that's why she'd never asked to go, to leave the two of them their special place. Denzel had assured her it was brown and dry no longer; first, the yellow flowers had grown, but now other types of plants were sprouting again, as the contamination shrank and life continued its inexorable march towards the place that had once been Midgar.

Was it time for her to pay a visit there, too?

She barely noticed when she started to cry. All these years she'd been dealing so well with her situation, supported by the love of Barret, Tifa, Cloud, and everyone else around her, but there was still the fact of loss, a hidden reservoir of pain that gushed out of her onto the bricks below. Her shoulders shook; she hiccupped a couple of times. The hurt didn't cancel out the happiness she'd found in spite of it – or, in some ways, because of it – they were both part of who she was. But she'd been covering up that hurt, until, here in her father's birthplace, she couldn't pretend any longer it wasn't there.

"Miss?" she heard an unfamiliar voice. "Are you okay?"

She whipped around, startled, but it was only a young man. Not too young, probably Cloud's age, but still. His eyes were warm, concerned.

He stayed a few steps back until she motioned him to approach, then crouching down beside her. "I saw you come out of the Fairs' house."

"Did you follow me?" Marlene half-demanded.

The man looked a little hurt. "Not exactly. I come here often myself. I was already heading this way when I saw you come out, and then –" He took a deep breath. "Maybe I should start from the beginning. My name's Sotetsu. When we were kids, I was really good friends with their son – "

"Zack," Marlene gasped.

Sotetsu's eyes went wide. "You know him?"

"Uh… not exactly." Marlene thought quickly what to say. "He, uh, died when I was very little." She hated to lie, even white lies, even lies of omission – but she had to. For a little while longer.

Sotetsu drooped. "So he is gone," he said, melancholy. "I kind of – I guess I knew. When he never came back all this time."

Marlene reached to squeeze his hand, ready with a trickle of healing if Sotetsu's soul needed it; but he seemed to be alright. Only ordinary grief. "But I do know he went out a hero. A true SOLDIER."

"How can you be so sure?" Sotetsu asked.

"Well... you see… my adopted dad – one of them – was one of Zack's best friends."

Several questions crossed Sotetsu's face, but the one he finally asked surprised Marlene. "You have more than one dad?"

You have no idea, thought Marlene. "It's… kinda weird, but I'll try to explain," she replied. "See, Barret, he's my papa. He found me when my original parents died in a disaster. A reactor explosion." Sotetsu nodded in understanding. Eleanor. Dyne. She wished she could have met them, but she'd been only weeks old at the time of their demise. "And my adopted mom is Tifa, but they're just friends. Barret says Tifa really whipped him into shape to be a better parent. And, well, Tifa and Cloud have been together, and they're the ones I live with – "

Sotetsu started. "Cloud?!" he asked. "Did you say Cloud?" Marlene nodded. "Crazy, spiky blond hair? Massive sword?"

"That's him!" Marlene felt her heart beginning to pound. "You know him? How?"

"He came through here with a group. A little bit before the meteor dropped. I wanted him to give me some tips how to fight, but he said he wasn't interested." Marlene laughed; that was Cloud for sure, or, more accurately, the way Cloud used to be. "But another girl with him, Yuffie, said she would be my Master and show me the ninja way."

"I know Yuffie too!" Marlene nearly shouted in delight.

"Really?" Sotetsu enthused. "I can't believe it! And – Tifa? that was the beautiful dark-haired woman with him? The one who could really kick some ass?"

"That's her. That's my mom," Marlene announced proudly.

"So. They really did end up together. I kind of thought they would, but then it seemed that other woman was interested – "

"That was Aerith," filled in Marlene. She'd have to explain Aerith and Zack later, but she didn't want to derail the current conversation. "The red animal with them is Nanaki. He's intelligent and he can talk. And the big dark-skinned man with them is actually my papa, Barret." Her words were spilling out of her as fast as she could speak them.

"The one with the gun on his arm?" asked Sotetsu, bewildered. "He's your dad?"

"Well, he doesn't have the gun anymore, but yeah," Marlene told him.

"Huh." Sotetsu thought for a moment. "I'll have to tell our blacksmith, Izo. He told a story once. Something about your dad owing him a cake."

"He'll pay up," Marlene promised. "Though he might get Tifa to bake it for him." She suddenly realized something. "I never introduced myself. I'm Marlene."

A yawn escaped her; Sotetsu placed a concerned hand on her back. "You must be tired, especially if you travelled here just today. And here I am, talking your ear off."

" 'S okay." She yawned again.

He rose, gallantly offering her his hand. "It was really nice to meet you, Marlene."

"Likewise," she answered.

"Will I have a chance to talk to you again?"

"I'm staying here for just a couple of days. Me and my grandma are staying at Cissnei's house," and thankfully, he didn't ask how she knew Cissnei, too. She was too tired to come up with an explanation.

Sotetsu smiled. "In that case… can I walk you back?"

She nodded, and as he led her carefully back down the hill, she felt like her heart had lightened.

On the other side of the world, Tifa stirred in her sleep.

It's only if you know love… that you know absolute fear.

Fear…

The plate came crashing down before her, the noise as if the Planet itself had screamed. Only this time, it left not rubble behind, but blackness, emptiness, as the remains of Sector Seven were sucked into the void.

A madman's laugh, following her as she ran, but shaking with terror, she couldn't run fast enough. The laugh grew closer, closer still…

Tifa woke with a start. "Hey, hey, are you okay?"

Her eyes opened to Cloud's hand on her shoulder, her beloved gently shaking her awake. Concern filled his eyes, today a lingering light blue to match the morning sky outside.

"You wanted to get up with me," he said, almost apologetic. "I brought you coffee."

Tifa could only nod and accept the proffered cup, its scent wafting awareness to her nostrils, as she let the mundane action wash away the painfully vivid images of her dream.

"Which was it this time?" he asked softly, eyes remaining on her as she sipped her beverage. She could see he was upset, the way he always was when she suffered something he had no power to help.

"The plate," she told him; he nodded. He knew. Bad, but not the worst. Nibelheim's fire hurt more – the day that had burned her innocence away along with everything she'd known. The worst of all, her eyes locked on Sephiroth as she dangled in the air, hate staring into hate, each feeding the other; before the monster snatched the katana out of her hands to slice her open and send her flying.

Well, there was one even worse. One she never could bring herself to tell Cloud. It was the endless variants of him dying alone, far from his loved ones. She was determined that would never be his ending.

"I'm okay," she assured him. She nearly was, with Cloud before her to make her feel safe once again. "Let's get ready for the day."

"We're a little short on time. Maybe hop in the shower together?" he suggested.

Tifa blushed. "Well, every time we've showered together… and if we don't have much time…"

He reached to caress her cheek. "Just to shower this time," he assured her.

They'd remodeled their master bedroom some time before. Tifa had found luxurious new bedding; black silk pillowcases, rich cotton sheets in darkest blue, and a comforter with an abstract pattern reminiscent of stars. A barely functional shower became a bathtub roomy enough for too, and a larger shower stall with a showerhead that rained warm, comforting drops. Cloud started the water, adjusting it to the temperature she preferred (although she knew it was a little hotter than he himself liked).

They shed their clothes into a messy pile and hopped in together with smiles, enjoying the flushed warmth of each other's bodies as the first spray hit. She took a moment to admire him, maybe a touch less chiseled than he'd been when younger, but still very nicely defined; he smirked, letting her know that he was well aware of her checking him out.

His penis rose halfway. "Sorry," he apologized. "Sometimes I can't help it around you." She reached for it, tempted, but he grabbed her wrist, pushing it quite definitely away.

"Later," he told her. "You're always the one who worries if we're running late, remember?"

Tifa sighed regretfully.

He soaped her all over, though barely brushed between her legs. She'd shaved again, as she did more often since she realized how much he liked it. Once, she looked him over, appraising, and suggested he might try the same. He did, and the enthusiasm with which she dropped to her knees and gulped him nearly whole was enough to convince him to maintain the habit.

Even that minimal contact with her sensitive region was enough to make Tifa gasp as he tried to keep from pressing his now-full erection against her. He would have happily shoved his head between her legs, and the WRO could damn well wait until he got there, but, well, he knew she'd only end up more stressed out… He moved onto her hair, taking down the bottle of expensive shampoo he'd bought her – scented with warm spices, vanilla, all the things that reminded him of her.

With so much available, gifts of food were harder to surprise her with; gone were the days when simple asparagus or ginger was enough to make her light up with delight. Nor was she much for jewelry, excepting her pearl earrings and the wolf ring she still wore. So he'd had to get a little more creative to find things to get for her.

He'd first heard of this brand from the women at the WRO, eavesdropping on them trading beauty tips one day. Interrupting politely, he'd asked where he could buy some; knowing he was married (and a couple had even met Tifa), they gladly indulged him and gave the name of the store in Asgar. He'd brought it hopefully home, and she'd absolutely squeal Cloud how did you find this, I've wanted it so long and it's so hard to find, it's sold out everywhere in Edge…

And now he had the pleasure of lathering it through her hair.

As the pads of his fingers massaged her scalp, she moaned as deep as if it was her bottom half he'd been rubbing instead. Cloud filed this information away for future use. She returned the favor to soap his body as well; he hoped dearly that his hard-on would subside before he got to work, or he'd be forced to lock his office for a few minutes to handle the situation.

Ah, the troubles of having an absolutely gorgeous wife.

But there was only so clean they could get; Cloud forced himself to reach out and turn off the faucet. Grabbing two towels off the rack, he gallantly wrapped one around her first before he attended to himself.

The towels were left on the bathroom floor, another mess that would have to be dealt with later as they hurriedly dressed. Minutes later she was mounting Fenrir behind him as they tore through Edge and onto the highway, barreling full speed to the WRO headquarters.

The scent of vanilla spice brushed his nostrils before the wind whisked it away.

"Marlene." Tifa stuck her head in her daughter's room. "Barret's here. And he has a surprise for you."

Marlene looked up from where she'd been seated cross-legged on the floor, organizing what she would need for the first few days of school. She wasn't moving to a new home… but the mess around her sure made her felt like she was. Her backpack (purple, of course) waited wide open, held upright by two textbooks she'd already placed inside. Smaller supplies littered the floor around her. On her easel, covering a still-unfinished portrait of Bahamut, she had several medical posters that would eventually adorn her walls, once she knew which ones to study first.

"I'll be right there," Marlene said; Tifa nodded, and withdrew.

Heading downstairs, she could indeed see her Papa waiting, holding something behind his back. Beside him, Tifa beamed. Cloud stood there looking like, well, Cloud, but he seemed strangely satisfied as well.

She scampered into the bar proper, ready to throw her arms around Barret, realizing belatedly that his arms weren't free to hug her back. Abashed, he brought forward the object he'd been concealing. "Sweetie," he cleared his throat nervously, "I, uh…"

"You got me a staff?" Marlene asked, flabbergasted. He nodded and passed the weapon to her.

Marlene stared in awe. It was indeed a staff – a very nice one, in fact. Solid metal, with a bluish-violet hand grip halfway down. Slots for materia above. A small loop crowned the top from which emanated rainbow rays, resembling nothing more than a colorful sun. But how did they think to…

"We figured since we got Denzel a sword at the end of spring, we should het something for you, too. Before you start school in the fall," Cloud answered her unvoiced thoughts. "We asked Denzel and Mina. They said a staff was pretty common for students in your program."

That was true; Marlene had seen a number of staves in the hands of others when she'd gone for orientation. Of course she knew that – she'd just been so taken aback…

"Is it not a good gift?" fretted Tifa. "Barret and I picked it out together…"

Marlene started; she hadn't realized how lost in her thoughts she had been. "No, it's a lovely gift. Perfect, even. I was just… really surprised." She straightened. "Thank you."

"How is your packing – " Cloud began, but Barret barked right over him. "My little baby girl. Going to college," he sniffled. "It seems just yesterday that I was saving for your education – "

"And giving me shit that you had to use it to pay my fee instead," mock-grumped Cloud.

"The options back then would have been a Shinra education. Or going far from home," Tifa reminded both men. "Let's all be grateful Marlene has the options she does."

Marlene was only barely listening. Most students in the medical program would use the staff in conjunction with materia to heal… but Marlene was not most students. Strictly speaking, she didn't need materia or the staff at all; but as she probed it with her Cetra senses, she could see how maybe she could use it to refocus her spells; sharpen, expand the abilities she already had.

Which brought her to another train of thought. She didn't know the limits of her own power yet; she only knew she hadn't reached them. She'd felt rather than saw Great Gospel, the healing rain her mother had sent, using her bond to Cloud to anchor across the divide and reach to this side of the Lifestream. But the day she had nearly drowned in the church… she'd seen it, vision heading backwards through time, understood.

What could she, Marlene, do, if she broke her own limits?

Would she use that power to heal?

Could she use that power to fight?

She didn't know yet where her education would take her. She was more of an adventurer than Denzel; she hoped it would take her far.

She didn't know where her future lay… but she thought she was getting closer to finding out.

Author's Note: Hey, another chapter! Next one after this is a single long scene that I'm kind of struggling with, because there's so much to include, but soon. I hope.

This chapter is a good example of how I often jumble very new stuff with very old. Marlene and Elmyra in Gongaga has been in my draft for a long time, but I literally wrote the Sotetsu sequence in one draft just a few days ago. Also, isn't it interesting how Rebirth referred to Gongagans as descendants of the Cetra? That, along with the new Gi lore, has me really excited to see where they are going with this. Another theory is that the Shadowblood Queen is actually Jenova.

Cloud and Tifa's new bedding is… actually MY bed. I looked at it one day and went, "Huh. This comforter looks very starry." And Marlene is drawing Bahamut because I want to draw a Bahamut mural for my bedroom wall. I still am wondering if I can include the Ever Crisis Bahamut/Cetra lore somewhere. So. Many. Bahamuts to choose from, and they just introduced another via EC – Bahamut Alba.

Speaking of EC… Marlene's staff is the Prism Rod. You can find it in that game, but more importantly, it's the weapon gloss I used for Aerith in DFFOO. (EC's Flower Cane was considered but a bit TOO obvious).

Until next time!