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[wingenvy]

[ooc: delayed intro is delayed! RL kind of blindsided me, but I should be good to go, now. Thanks for being patient with me :|b]


[It's probably a hallucination; that's the only explanation Zack can come up with as he looks around at his new surroundings. It's not the lab, or the transparent green of a mako pod, or even the forest outside of town. Instead he sees... space.]

...What the hell?

[Nice and coherent, there. But since when did this happen? He can sort of remember a dream, but dreams have never been reality. And what about-]

Cloud? Cloud, where are you? Cloud! [...Nothing.] Is this some kind of joke? Hey! This isn't funny...!

[Aaaand he's walking. Through space.

...So weird.]

Comments

[herobydefault.livejournal.com]

[Cloud, possessing tunnel vision, was not paying very close attention at first. He'd just walked past Zack -maybe he'll just stop at the bar first, see if Oliver is there, THEN he'll go home and never come back- in an effort to find someplace quiet.

But loud, tromping boots running behind you tends to get your attention quickly and he spins around in time to be tackled to the ground by a guy with over half a foot on his height and over thirty pounds on his weight.

He lets out a yelp as they hit the ground and immediately attempts to shove his assailant back.]

What-

Who the hell- Get off!

hi lj, thanks for never giving me this notif. jerk.

[wingenvy]

[Zack just grins and ignores Cloud's flail, the relief in his expression probably as apparent as his glee. He's walking. He's talking! He hasn't heard Cloud's voice for months. This is like a miracle!]

Cloud, I can't believe it! You're okay!

YEAH THANKS A LOT LJ D:<

[herobydefault.livejournal.com]

Why wouldn't I be okay? Get off you nutcase!

[Great, someone else he met here who knows him and insists on acting crazy. Cloud shoves at Zack again- Geez, this guy has an incredible grip. What is he, part mutant bear?]

[wingenvy]

[That makes Zack sit up, blinking in surprise- and his sudden lack of glomping might make Cloud aware of the fact that he has the eyes of a SOLDIER.]

Huh? What's wrong, Cloud?

[herobydefault.livejournal.com]

[Since Zack is about half a foot from his face, yes. Cloud definitely notices. And now that he's not trying to get this crazy person off of him he realizes that that face looks terribly familiar. His brow furrows for a second, and he shakes his head-

"I'm just joking. I'd never abandon you!"

Cloud winces, the movement sharp as he quickly brings a hand up to his forehead. He- He knows him-

"Hey...you okay?"

"Because we're friends, right?"

Cloud makes a low sound in the back of his throat and clutches at his bangs; he knows him, he knows this person. His face-

His face-]

Z-...

[wingenvy]

[That reaction makes Zack immediately concerned, and he shifts to let Cloud up rather than continuing to pin him, brows furrowing. He looks like... he's confused. Like his mind is mixed up, just like in Nibelheim. It's so worrisome, and Zack doesn't want to confuse him more, so he waits, lifting a hand to grasp his shoulder.]

Cloud...?

[herobydefault.livejournal.com]

[It takes Cloud a minute to compose himself, but it's still shocking even without the jumbled memories bouncing around in his head. He knows him. This...this is Zack. This is the man that went to Nibelheim as a SOLDIER, the one who saved Cloud. Who died to save him.

Were they friends before that? God, Cloud couldn't even remember.

But it's definitely him. The scar on his cheek, the eyes, even the way he says his name is familiar. And Cloud remembers, of all things, his boots. The way his shoes look, the way Zack would tuck his pant legs into the cuffs of his boots haphazardly because he couldn't be assed to do it the proper way when he wasn't under inspection. ...did Cloud know that, or did Zack tell him? He doesn't know.

What he does know is that Zack is supposed to be dead.]

I...yeah.

I'm fine...I'm all right.

[wingenvy]

[...Oh, thank god. The familiarity is back, and with it, relaxation. Zack gives his shoulder a pat and leans back, grinning.]

Good to hear it! Man, it's great to hear you talking. You've been out of it for a long time.

[herobydefault.livejournal.com]

[Maybe before he attempts to make sense of the situation he should try to gather some more information on how exactly this is possible. This isn't the Lifestream; it can't be.

Unless he really is zoning out into his memories and all these unfamiliar people are just figments of his imagination and he's actually just staring blankly ahead while Tifa freaks out. Oh Holy.]

I have? How...how long, actually?

[wingenvy]

[Cloud still doesn't seem entirely calm - much to Zack's confusion, but... then again, they are sort of talking in the middle of space. So he scuffs a hand through his hair and stands up, offering it out to help Cloud to his feet.]

It's been four years.

[herobydefault.livejournal.com]

Four...

[...yeah that sounds about right. Except that Cloud can't remember anything from roughly seven of them. But four means Zack has to still be in the labs. Probably maybe. He thinks. So apparently what people had been telling him about individuals being pulled in from different times had to be right. That is, unless he really was hallucinating or becoming psychotic and this was all some sort of elaborate trick his mind was playing on him.

Cloud takes his hand, climbing slowly to his feet. Now what does he do? He doesn't remember anything, but he just can't blurt out, "Oh you're from a different time, which makes sense because you're dead." It's...no. Tactless and besides that, extremely painful. Cloud might only barely remember Zack, but...he saved his life.

This vibrant, happy person here died to save his miserable little comatose life.

Cloud shifts awkwardly and rubs his arm, looking away. In his nervousness -or maybe it was something else, it felt right to sound this way when speaking with Zack- he begins to slip back into his mountain twang.]

...sorry. I- Lots of stuff is still pretty fuzzy. 'm not sure I remember all the things you do.

[wingenvy]

[That's actually to be expected, considering all of Hojo's meddling; it's a wonder Cloud has any decent memories at all. He's just thrilled that Cloud is talking again... it's been way too long since he had someone around to really talk to, and having a real, coherent conversation with his best friend is the best surprise he could've asked for.]

Don't worry about it- take it easy, okay? Maybe it'll help if you tell me what you do remember.

[herobydefault.livejournal.com]

[No that will not help.

Cloud fumbles even more awkwardly than before; it's like talking with both a stranger and an old friend at the same time and he's not sure what to make of the feeling.]

...why don't we go sit down instead of just standin' here talkin' like this?

[wingenvy]

[Cloud's acting kind of weird, but he's not about to let it bother him. Zack shrugs, though he glances around, puzzled.]

Do you know where we should go? I've never been here, so I'm kind of lost.

[herobydefault.livejournal.com]

[Cloud is about to suggest the bar, but...maybe that's too crowded. Can't talk in a library either, really.

Shit.]

Um...I've only been here once before. Maybe we can just...look around some, I guess. [Find a secluded place behind a building, because this talk is going to be uncomfortable and if Zack is going to flip his shit Cloud would rather he do it in relative privacy.]

[wingenvy]

[Well, he'll try not to spazz out, but it';s not like he can make any promises. He gives Cloud a playful little shove, unable to help himself; he's just so thrilled to see him up and about!]

Sounds good to me! We can talk and walk, too- it's not like there isn't a lot of space here. [Hurr hurr, bad puns ahoy.]

[herobydefault.livejournal.com]

[Ha ha, funny. Cloud rolls his eyes, but doesn't shove back. Maybe they horsed around a lot; Cloud doesn't even remember if they were friends before Nibelheim, but from how Zack was behaving maybe they were. He only barely remembered the incident in the reactor, and the entire two years in Midgar as a trooper are completely blank, like someone had neatly cut those memories out of his head and left an empty space.

It was terribly frustrating.]

I can tell you what other people told me about this place, but it sounds pretty nuts.

[wingenvy]

Yeah, some guys tried to explain it to me, but it's all over my head, anyway. But you said you were here before and went home? So it must be true that you can go home just by thinking about it?

[herobydefault.livejournal.com]

Um...yeah, I guess so. I was trying not to come back here, but...you can see how that worked out.

[wingenvy]

I can't say it's a bad place, though. I get to see you like this! You must be from, uh. The future, I guess? My future, anyway.

[herobydefault.livejournal.com]

Um...yeah, I think so. I guess it depends...how old am I? From when you're from, I mean.

[Oh Christ how is he doing to dodge these questions artfully ffffff]

[wingenvy]

...Honestly, man, I don't know. It's probably been years since Nibelheim, but I don't even know how old I am.

[herobydefault.livejournal.com]

[Oh well eff.]

Um. ...well I'm twenty-one. ...though I dunno how informative that'll be.

Uhhh...I don't know when you escaped exactly...

[wingenvy]

Same here. [Hm. This is troublesome B|]

Do you know what year it is? For you, I mean.

fuck you i had to look this shit up

[herobydefault.livejournal.com]

Nineteen ninety-seven.

[All Cloud remembers is that between Nibelheim and arriving in Midgar, five years passed. Hopefully he can use the amnesia to his advantage because euuugghhhh he can't tell Zack. Not yet.

Maybe not ever.]