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Post by mrcrazycakes on Jul 5, 2010 22:03:50 GMT -5
[avatar]http://i563.photobucket.com/albums/ss80/gaamariou/CloudAvatar1.jpg[/avatar]
It had taken a little while after the Storm for things to settle down enough to think about things like relationships, but time was the healer of all wounds. After about two weeks, it had died down from the first wave of attacks by an unknown force to a disaster. Repair work was expected to take quite a while, but a majority of the shops had repaired things enough inside and out to be back in business with minimal problems with the repairs. It was good that things were returning to normal. All except the word spreading about Radiant Garden's defenders, normal people you would have found on the streets defending against what was now being called the Anomaly.
One of these 'defenders' was the soft spoken blond that was already somewhat known for his sword. Cloud Strife, that guy no one really knew, but now people seemed to take some sort of notice. Before, he'd heard rumors that he was trying to scare people by carrying the massive Buster Sword on his back everywhere; now he heard rumors that the rest of the town's inhabitants were also considering keeping a weapon nearby in case something like that happened.
If nothing else, at least now people didn't look at him like he was an idiot for carrying what must have been a two hundred pound slab of metal on his back. His goal this particular afternoon was to meet up with Aerith for a first date, of sorts. They'd both been busy the past couple of weeks, but now that things had quieted down some, maybe that start of a relationship could grow a bit more. He'd decided to dress a bit nicer this evening, if not a bit darker than usual. Still, it couldn't really be helped; his outfits were made to be practical, not fashionable. He'd been told a few times he looked better in the black outfit, so he'd chosen that one. Hopefully, Aerith hadn't forgotten about this 'first date', so to speak, like he almost had earlier that day.
He couldn't help but wonder what she had planned for this afternoon and evening as he arrived at the door to her house. He rapped on the door loudly enough to be heard and conformed himself to waiting. Cloud wished he'd gotten flowers for her, but when Aerith owned and operated the only flower shop in town he knew of, buying a bouquet would have been fairly noticeable. Still, he was here, and that was all that really mattered so far as he was concerned.
>> Current outfit; KH2/AC
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Post by Secret Agent Cat on Jul 5, 2010 22:35:02 GMT -5
Aerith had been so busy these last couple of weeks but by the end of the last week it had begun to settle down some but she continued to remain a busy bee. Always wanting to help here and there; to help others who were less fortunate than she. Though, she couldn't believe how much damage had actually been done and that it had already been fixed for the most part. She just hoped that the Anomaly didn't show up again. And that they wouldn't cause so much damage as they had done two weeks prior. Plus, the townsfolk would be more prepared as would be guards of Radiant Garden. Everyone would be on the look out for such a disturbance. Whether it be another Anomaly attack (she hoped not), or a normal animal attack like a wild dog or something.
The owner of the flower shop had sent many bouquets to friends, neighbors even acquaintances. Some had been free, something to cheer others up. To give them hope. To brighten the towns' people up as well as the town itself. Empty shattered vases had been replaced with more beautiful vases, pots of flowers that had been damaged had been replanted and were now blossoming. Aerith should also have been blossoming herself; if it wasn't for that fact that to this day with all things seemingly back to normal, that she remained busy. She had a small habit of overdoing things, especially with sending flowers. She had sent beautiful bouquets of flowers to just about everybody and she was still sending them out. And, baking even more than ever.
But, today there was no small of muffins or a pie coming from the Gainsborough house. Though the window was partially open. As a young blond hair man came to the Gainsborough residence and knocked on the door, there was no answer coming from inside. It seemed no one was home; though why would their window be open some? Strange. Usually Aerith always answered when she was home. Maybe, she was at the shop? [avatar]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v654/KatsumiX/Aerith/aerith3.png[/avatar]
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Post by mrcrazycakes on Jul 5, 2010 22:51:36 GMT -5
[avatar]http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn127/puhbear78/chocobo.jpg[/avatar]
Strange. Aerith usually opened the door, even if she was busy with something. Or doing anything. Or any time someone knocked on the door. Cloud considered what to do for a minute, noting that the window was open. She wouldn't have left the window open if she was going anywhere, so he decided she was probably inside somewhere. He checked the door, and it came open without any problems. She definitely wouldn't have left with the door unlocked, so that erased any doubt from his mind she was here. he shut the door behind him, and peered around. Cloud had been into Aerith's house maybe twice, and he honestly hadn't seen it this dark. From the looks of it, Aerith had probably lain down for a nap earlier and hadn't woken up yet. He couldn't exactly blame her; she'd been working very hard. That would also explain her absence around town this warm-weathered Saturday.
"Hey, Aerith," He called out, loud enough to rouse her if she was asleep, but not so loud that he'd scare her if she wasn't. "You all right?"
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Post by Secret Agent Cat on Jul 5, 2010 23:16:55 GMT -5
It was indeed dark inside of the Gainsborough residence. Even Aerith's mother wasn't home. As one walked further into the residence and came across the dining room table which wasn't far from the doorway one could see a note lying on the table. The light from the open window lighting the table faintly. It was probably from Aerith's mother, or even Aerith herself.
Cloud's voice went through the house and trailed upstairs some. Adjacent to the dining area a stairway against the wall could be seen. A faint light coming down the stairs. Perhaps she was upstairs?
Inside a room in the house a girl moved underneath the covers; stirring momentarily. Finally she opened her eyes but only to be blinded by the light coming through her bedroom window. She opened them again and looked around. Her brown hair falling away from her face as she turned over. "Huh..." she said to herself quietly. "Swore that was Cloud's voice in my dream.." She began to stretch as she sat up, the covers moving away from her revealing a white top with a pink one underneath. She finished stretching and stood up. She was wearing a white and blue skirt. She walked to her window and looked out, it was slowly getting dark. Mid afternoon almost. She wondered how long she had actually slept.
She moved to her dresser and looked at herself in her mirror. She then began to brush her hair and then pinned it back some to get some of her hair; mostly her bangs, out of her face.
She was unaware that the voice she had heard was actually Cloud's and it wasn't from just inside her dream. [avatar]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v654/KatsumiX/Aerith/aerith3.png[/avatar]
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Post by mrcrazycakes on Jul 5, 2010 23:32:34 GMT -5
Cloud noticed the note on the table, and he took a peek, but he recognized the signature at the bottom as being from Aerith's mother, deciding it to be none of his business. The faint light drifting from upstairs was encouraging, though; maybe she was up there. But still, he couldn't exactly charge up the stairs and barge into a room; what if Aerith was getting dressed? She definitely wouldn't like that; not to mention he'd probably scare her half to death if he charged into her room at random. He decided he'd call for her again.
"Aerith, you here?" He called, a bit louder this time. He really hoped he wasn't disturbing her; but then, he supposed if anyone had a reason to be mad about the situation it would be him. He wasn't quite the aggressive type, though; he wouldn't mind moving their date to another time if she needed to get some rest. He'd heard that some people wigged out if their dating plans were turned awry, but it didn't really matter so long as Aerith was content. "It's Cloud."
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Post by Secret Agent Cat on Jul 8, 2010 0:11:50 GMT -5
[avatar]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v654/KatsumiX/Aerith/aerith3.png[/avatar] The note was indeed from Aerith's mother, but to whom it was directed towards no one would know for Cloud didn't really take a good look at it nor did he read it. It mighn't have been ayn of his business but what if it had been? What if it was for him? Telling him that Aerith was resting and might have forgotten about their little date. Yes, she knew about them. Well, she had a hunch. Cloud had been hanging out with Aerith a lot recently and also Aerith seemed to be more content and happier than normal. Not that Ms. Gainsborough didn't mind the extra help at the flower shop and in general.
Aerith started to hum lightly as she began to fix herself up, she sat in the chair in front of her dresser. Reaching for her boots on the floor she began to put them on. As she finished putting her left boot on she heard a voice from downstairs, a man's voice. As called to her from downstairs, she instantly remembered that today was their date. "Cloud!..." she blurted out, putting her right boot on as she hobbled to her door and ran to the stairway. She looked down, peeking over the railing. She saw Cloud, "I am so, so, so sorry...I forgot all about our date," the brunette began to apologize, her hair falling to her face some as she leaned over the railing.
"How can I make it up to you?" she asked, still looking over the railing.
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Post by mrcrazycakes on Jul 8, 2010 19:55:12 GMT -5
Cloud smiled when Aerith practically bolted down the stairs. At least she was all right. "It's okay. You've been workin' hard; I'm glad you got some rest," He said, his voice returning to it's usual volume. "It's not too late now. We can still go if you're feeling up to it. I'm fine with rescheduling, if you're still tired."
That was one thing about Cloud; he wasn't hard to please. So long as whoever he was with at the time was happy, he was, too. Even if Aerith had forgotten about their scheduled first date after the Storm, he was glad she'd been able to get some much needed rest. From Cloud's point of view, she'd been running herself ragged for two weeks straight. "Just glad to see you're okay. I was startin' to get worried when you weren't answering."
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Post by Secret Agent Cat on Jul 9, 2010 15:14:44 GMT -5
[avatar]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v654/KatsumiX/Aerith/aerithcolor2.png[/avatar] She smiled down at Cloud, he was always so considerate. He said they could reschedule if she was still tired. She had had a nice long nap so she was ready, the rest of the day she was just going to do some chores and maybe some errands. "No, no..there's no need to reschedule," she said to him, walking down the rest of the stairs. She smiled at him.
"Sorry, I think I was asleep when you first called to me.." she said to him thinking that it must have been really Cloud's voice in her dream. "I think for the most part I'm ready to go on our little date," she walked past Cloud towards the table. Seeing the note she walked over and picked it up, reading it to herself;
Aerith,
Hopefully you haven't forgotten that Cloud's coming over to pick you up later. I'll be at a neighbors house. Have fun and stay out as long as you need to, you have been working awfully hard these last couple of weeks. Have fun!
-Your mother.
She set the note down and smiled, realizing how hard she had actually been working. She looked over at Cloud and asked, "Ready?"
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Post by mrcrazycakes on Jul 9, 2010 16:22:15 GMT -5
[avatar]http://i563.photobucket.com/albums/ss80/gaamariou/CloudAvatar1.jpg[/avatar]"Yeah, I'm ready," Cloud replied, grabbing Aerith's hand and leading her out of the house. He actually hadn't planned much more than dinner at a surprise location. Cloud hadn't told her where they were going, but he was sure she'd love the location he'd picked. He'd been doing a lot of odd jobs in the wake of the Storm, and now that he wasn't broke, he had enough munny to take Aerith on a date and worry about not having enough cash.
"So, you have any plans for what we're doin' tonight? Or do you wanna surprise me and keep it secret?" He asked lightly, nudging her slightly with his arm. He'd left most of the planning to her; she was a lot better at it than he was. Not to mention she knew a lot of beautiful places that he probably hadn't even thought about.
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Post by Secret Agent Cat on Jul 9, 2010 18:09:55 GMT -5
Aerith smiled at Cloud as he grabbed her hand, leading her out of the house. She walked along sides him. "Mm, not really.." she said to him. Wondering if she should actually tell him the truth. "I sort of kind of forgot about tonight," she said truthfully to him. She didn't like keeping secrets from others, especially those close to her heart.
"How 'bout you take me wherever you want to go, I won't complain," not that she ever really complained. Maybe, argue a little but never complain. She smiled sweetly at Cloud. "A kind of punishment for forgetting about our date, you can take me wherever your little heart desires," though of course his heart wasn't little. It was big and full of love. And light. She smiled again, holding his hand as they walked.[avatar]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v654/KatsumiX/Aerith/aerith3.png[/avatar]
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Post by mrcrazycakes on Jul 9, 2010 19:49:05 GMT -5
"Hm... that's okay. You've been runnin' yourself hard the past couple of weeks. I'm glad you got some rest; you needed it," Cloud said, ruffling her hair affectionately with his free hand. Like she complained anyways. "Okay... So we're gonna use tonight to get to know each other better and have a good time. I picked out a nice place for us to have dinner whenever you're hungry."
Cloud gave a short pause before speaking again. He had to make sure he had everything thought out right. "We'll take turns asking questions. We can ask anything about each other. You start us off; what's somethin' you want to know about me?"
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Post by Secret Agent Cat on Jul 9, 2010 20:51:37 GMT -5
Aerith lowered her head some as he ruffled her hair, then stood up straight as he stopped and began to explain what they were going to do tonight. "Well, seeing as you just asked me a question...you started," Aerith giggled.
"Hmm..something I want to know about you?" she repeated, trying to come up with something to ask him. "What made you want to be a warrior?" she mused.
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Post by mrcrazycakes on Jul 9, 2010 21:34:11 GMT -5
"My dad. He was one before he died. He was one of the guards at the Bastion, the combat instructor. I would've worked there, but things didn't work out. My dad left me the Buster Sword when he died," Cloud answered, glad he'd gotten through that inquiry without a change in moods. It would have been bad if the memories of his deceased father dampened their first date.
"Okay, one for you..." He said, considering what to ask for a moment. "How did you meet Squall?"
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Post by Secret Agent Cat on Jul 9, 2010 21:48:20 GMT -5
Aerith listened as Cloud explained then was surprised by his question. She giggled softly, "We pretty much grew up together. He was my best friend through my childhood. I was being chased by a dog when Squall rescued, which was when we first met," she said reminiscing a bit.
She put her finger to her chin as she thought of another question for Cloud, "Gosh, I don't really know what to ask," she giggled. "What were you like as a child?" she asked.
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Post by mrcrazycakes on Jul 12, 2010 18:09:16 GMT -5
"Hm... I'll put it this way; I'd be as far away as possible. I don't remember if I ever said more than a full sentence to anyone who wasn't my mom or dad," Cloud answered, chuckling a little. "I still can't do anything with my hair, though."
With that, he was silent for a little bit. After a second, he pointed out a restaurant that had been blocked from sight by buildings until then. Aerith's mother had mentioned this was a place she'd wanted to go for a long time. One of those really nice restaurants where (apparently) people held dates often. He could never quite remember the name of it, though. "That's where we're eating tonight. Sound good to you?"
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