( open + closed ) catch all

[promisely]

WHO: Tifa & others!
WHAT: Catch all for May (potentially further) & TDM overflow
WHERE: Alllll over
WHEN: May - ?
WARNINGS: None as of now, will udpate if needed!

Comments

✧ — kaito.

[promisely]

( continued from tdm. )

( tomorrow. guilt begins to web through her, even with that insistent tug of his to begin to pull her along. honestly, the idea of getting out of there for a little while and out into the open air was a welcome one, and so with a final glance over her shoulder at the stagnant line of bodies, limbs give and follow with a quiet sigh. )

It's nice of you, to care so much. ( she doesn't feel like she's being naive — he'd offered her a sweater to cover up, stopped where she'd perched herself away from the crowd of bodies to check on her. she's at least had some time to get her bearings, so even if she is still feeling a bit out of her element, there was nothing wrong with allowing herself some form of comfort when it was offered.

so she'll glance up to his side profile as she walks with him, paying mind to the way he guides her through the base. )

And they're safe? ( the springs, she means. ) Back home we deal with monsters, too. You can't really ever be sure where they will or won't be.

[seafloor]

[ For a moment, Kaito worries that Tifa will politely decline his invitation. He wouldn't blame her for it either, but...

But what? Would he be that torn up over not being able to help a newbie relax, or would he be torn up over being turned down?

Before he can properly think about that, she finally turns to follow him. Sigh or not, he flashes a relieved smile, making a beeline for the base's station exit. ]

Do you think so? I bet some would call me weird for giving a damn. Or creepy, for trying to take advantage of a pretty newbie trying to settle herself in a strange city. [ Kaito chuckles; if he was an onlooker, maybe he'd accuse himself of the same.

Their jaunt through base is brief. It doesn't take long to get to the singular train station entrance. Only LILITH employees are allowed onto this particular track, and at this hour the train is practically empty. Clean, sterile, and empty. A little unsettling.

Thankfully, the trip to the connecting station for regular citizens is very brief—but long enough for them to chat a bit. ]

The springs are as safe as it gets. As far as I've seen, kaiju are the only monsters that appear here, and they don't show up very often. It's not completely safe, but from what I'm hearing, you're used to the possibility of nasties popping out at any moment. So am I.

[promisely]

I don't think it's weird. ( a part of her can understand where he's coming from, and why others might pass such judgment, but if she's proven anything time and time again it's her ability to look after herself. to think for herself, even with her back against the wall. brows tug into a tuft, hair rustling as she shakes her head, confident in her standing. )

You're being kind. I think a lot of people have forgotten what that looks like.

( when they make it to the train station, an eager draft bites at the exposed skin of her thighs, grateful once more for the sweater he'd lent her to cover up. it hasn't dawned on her just yet that she doesn't exactly have the attire to appreciate the likes of hot springs, but she hasn't exactly anticipated that they'd get into the water. maybe she'd dangle her feet in, savor being cloaked with a fresher air — the paperwork could wait until morning, like he'd said.

there's no denying how the tension knotted within her shoulders begins to dissolve the further they move from the base. )

Yeah, in a way. I've sort of had to be. ( palm still clasped to his forearm, she allows her sights to wander, taking in the world beyond the base, how different it was from her own. ) You have them, where you're from?

( a beat, and she clarifies: ) Monsters, fiends... there's lots of names.

[seafloor]

[ Her reassurance prompts Kaito to lean back against the shut train doors. Some tension of his own releases from between his shoulder blades—maybe a bit faster as she continues to hold onto his forearm. ]

...Yeah. A lot of people are hurt, in this world or otherwise. They look at kindness and see something that isn't there. I can't always blame them... but I'm glad you appreciate it.

[ Kaito feels satisfied, even if it's an odd sense of satisfaction. As if he hasn't experienced it in a while. Maybe that speaks to the cruelty of this world. ]

There are many names, yes. My world has them, but their numbers are low. They're isolated to certain parts of the realm, and so they don't pose a huge threat to the general public.

With any luck, it'll stay that way. My world is a parallel version of this one, but set back two-hundred years ago and inhabited by countless races. Not just humans. We've had enough trouble just trying to get along with each other, y'know?

[ As he explains, the sights continue to fly on by. Unfortunately, most of what's out there is ruins, steel, and concrete. As they approach the next station, more and more fences crop up, and dilapidated buildings become replaced by steel spires.

Honestly? It might not look too dissimilar from Midgar. Or maybe a blend of Midgar and Night City from Cyberpunk 2077. ]

✧ — choso.

[promisely]

( continued from tdm. )

( it's only ever been a far-away thought, for her — having the choice to not fight at all. had she ever really been given that chance? when she was young, maybe. naive to the monsters that prowled gaia, both human and inhuman alike. since that fateful afternoon she'd found master zangan in the spring, she's yet to sit still. it's part of the reason why she feels so out of place, beyond being pulled to a world that wasn't her own — but shouldn't she understand what it is she's fighting for, first?

a soft nod, gaze fixing on her fingers as they fidget about her shin, lost to thought. ) They're lucky to have you then.

Fighting for the people you care about is the best motivation you can have, really. ( something grips her heart, uncomfortable and sharp. a reminder that she was alone. )

It doesn't seem to scare you. ( a search for his gaze, tiniest furrow between her brows. )

[gimu]

[ his gaze is easy enough to find; it’s focused on her, watchful as if searching, scanning for the distress he has only begun to recognize in others, the little signs that most other people will never beg help for.

what does fear look like for tifa? is it this, her wandering gaze and restless hands? is it this, how she makes of herself the smallest target possible? wondering and quietly curious, choso only stares, blinking slow and benign as his eyes dart between hers. ]

It does frighten me. [ a confession, so easily poured into her hands. ]

But as a big brother, I must still walk ahead, so that my little brother may follow without fear, and those around him may follow his lead with faith.

Do you think you are able to follow them, Tifa?

[promisely]

( she appreciates the earnest with which he answers her, the honesty where others might search for the words they think she'd want to hear, instead. there was nothing weak about fear — being brought here in the way they were, instructed to fight while they built up the visage of a community around them, it'd be more of a shortcoming to pretend.

a warmth churns in her gaze, and at the mention of a brother the slightest curl finds the corner of her brims. )

Well it sounds like you're a great brother. ( it's an easier response than the question that succeeds it. them — it was such a vague term, something so poorly defined, when she'd been carelessly plucked from her own world and told simply to follow. )

Do we really have a choice? ( it's not defiance in her tone so much as a glint of her own fear, at the foreign device implanted within her, within all of them. she raises a hand, tapping at the side of her crown as if to gesture toward it. the last thing she wants is for him to assume she wouldn't help, if the situation called for it. )

I know what it's like, to fight for people. With people. But if you don't have that— or them—it's hard to do it just because.

✧ — yuji.

[promisely]

( continued from tdm. )

you mean back home to... yourself?
i'm still trying to understand exactly how this all works

i'm sure if you feel that way here, they are being taken care of
guess it's kind of hard to be reassured when it feels like you're split in two places at once, though

[eyescar]

yeah, it was just like that
it was a night here, but weeks at home

i'm trying to take it easy because it's all we can do, but that doesn't make it easier?
but there are a lot of good people here.

[promisely]

weeks...?

( dread wraps thick and tugging around her heart. )

when you went back, how did it feel?
if you don't mind me asking.
since it'd been so long back home. did you have any memory of it all?

✧ — geto.

[promisely]

( continued from tdm. )

People can be cruel if they're desperate.

( and while it certainly seems as if that's the case, could any of them really be sure what it was they were fighting for? it's like he said, the lengths they must've gone through to get them here, to modify them into the role of what they needed most — she can feel the device implanted within her humming as if recognizing it's being thought of. )

Geto. ( a softly hummed note of acknowledgment, though she imagines he won't be difficult to forget. and for what it's worth, she appreciates that he doesn't try to sugarcoat it. she's been in dire straits of her own. trying to make it all something it wasn't wouldn't benefit any of them. )

At least this should be the least we'll know, right? Maybe those that've been here longer will have a better idea as to what's really going on.

[gorb]

( For a moment he seems to weigh something up, a flicker of thoughtfulness behind his eyes. It's there and then gone, Geto moving to take the seat opposite her without asking, sinking into it with his knees spread like the insolent youth he hasn't been for a very long time. )

People can be.

( Agreement, he's an old friend with it. ) That doesn't mean we have to like it. Nor sympathise. Though it makes you think - is there a correlation? What do we have in common? With each other, or the people already here? Why choose us? If they can pick anyone from any time then why not simply ... go back and take those humans that lived here before? Although clearly they weren't enough considering we're needed now. I'd take everything I'm told with a pinch of salt. Trust isn't easy to come by when you've essentially been kidnapped.

[promisely]

( she's surprised when he makes to sit with her, but far from displeased. it'd seemed at first that he'd merely entertained her distracted murmur while he'd passed by, all too content to stir on to the shadows of the room or perhaps find himself elsewhere entirely. the conversation doesn't feel mindless, beyond just a means of distracting themselves from the reality they'd been pulled into.

she watches him as he speaks, the careful cadence of it all, turning the soft underbelly of the unknown up to glare back at them. )

I don't know that they would've been able to. Toying around with life and death like that. ( there's no way for her to know the state the others had been in when they'd awoken here, just the same as her. pulling from different timelines didn't necessarily mean the ability to go back into their own. )

I just keep thinking of what they'd said. Or what I can remember. They'd called me 'suitable.' ( her eyes seem to glaze over, as if trying to sift through a fog-ridden memory. ) If they're... repopulating, ( the word feels almost vile on her tongue, features twisting around it as if some rotten thing in her mouth. ) I can't imagine they'd do anything unintentionally.

( hues cast around the room again, settling momentarily on each individual before going to the next. ) Everyone's serving some sort of purpose.

✧ — yzak.

[promisely]

( continued from tdm. )

( his fluster doesn't deter her, if anything in some strange way it's almost... nice to be met with someone so expressive, reminds her a little of each of her friends that waited back home — cloud in his pessimistic gloom, aerith in the way she unforgivingly over-brimmed, barret's rashness — all cocktailed into one individual. and so the subtle if not still uneasy smile that finds her lips isn't in amusement so much as it is softened fondly by memory. )

I think that might be a safe guess. ( as much as the organization might strive to create some sort of community between the outsiders, it's a bit difficult to forget that they'd all been brought here against their own will.

still, she can't shake the thought that they might be listening — she's yet to learn the full capability of the implants, but she knows better than to think they'd give them a full briefing, case and point being outfits they quite literally couldn't change. )

I'm Tifa. ( spoken softly, features shifting into a shade of empathy. she might not be able to take the circumstances away, but she could do her best to distract them from it for a little while, coudln't she? ) I'm guessing you're new here, too?

[coordination]

[ He knows HE hasn't slacked off! In fact, he's one of the ridiculously punctual sort of people who probably got his papers in first.

... which also means with these requests for resubmission, he's probably done that more if not the most compared to the rest of the team. ]

Brand new. [ He answers, and then brings a hand up to salute, posture very straight and professional (or as much as it can be in heels). Only ... it's not as soldiery or proper when it's being done in a maid dress. ] Lieutenant Colonel Yzak Jule. It's good to meet you, Tifa.

[promisely]

( the smile that warms across her brims at his proper salute pulls her from the tension of the room, and she can't help but to straighten up herself, lacing fingers at the small of her back and giving a tiny bow in greeting. )

Well, it's nice to meet you too, Colonel. ( a glance to his papers, and then one back to the line that waits unwaveringly behind them. ) I don't think this'll be moving anytime soon.

What do you say we go do some exploring?

✧ — hunter.

[promisely]

( continued from tdm. )

( a nod at his reply, following the twin shade of his hues to the long stretch of a street that serves to both beckon and deter. as much as she wants to keep at it, head and heart-strong alike, she's not so sure just how much further she can push herself without becoming even more of a potential burden. the last thing she wants is to cause anyone else any trouble. )

I, um. ( now that she feels a bit more steady on her feet, swallowing down the prick of nausea that threatens to swell once more, that touch that'd braced her relinquishes, choosing to hug the kit in to her chest instead. )

I planned to- ( go further, ) but, ah. Now I'm not so sure if I should. ( the words come a little breathless, but she offers a friendly smile nonetheless, still managing to spark her gaze despite how her body wars with her. ) You should keep going. I can get myself back.

[newphew]

[ maybe he should just keep going without her, especially as she's insisting on finding her own way home. and trying really hard to project strength. he's been there..... ]

[ but it just feels wrong, leaving her to find her way home when she's this unsteady already. he doesn't recognize her, and chances are extremely high she's a new recruit. so.... ]

[ he sighs ]

... It's fine. I'll escort you back.

[ he offers his arm if she needs to use him to steady herself again. not quite looking at her. because he's a little embarrassed. ]

[promisely]

( she hesitates a moment as he offers to return with her, lips parting before they resolve to a close once more after a beat. his gaze is cast away from her, but it's not exactly unfriendly — would it be so bad, accepting his help? he could always come back once he's gotten her back to the portal, and they weren't far... much as she were keen to be there for others, she hasn't exactly learned the most graceful way to accept others giving her the same in return.

finally, she nods, wrapping her hand around the arm that's offered and starting the trek back toward neo tokyo's portal. )

Thank you. ( a glance to his profile again, gratitude kindling in garnet hues. ) I'm Tifa.

You've been here awhile, haven't you?

✧ — toji.

[promisely]

( continued from tdm. )

( she doesn't keep his gaze from perusing her own form if that's what he's after, whether to check to see if she'd completed it — which she has, thank you very much! — or merely to be nosy, it's hardly offensive given everything else they're meant to deal with, including a set of paperwork that seemed to ask the same questions ten times over and luring them out in suggestive clothing. it's clearly meant to fluster them all, but... why? 'because they could' seemed too infantile for the likes of LILITH.

regardless, she'll take hold of the clipboard he's jarred into her arm, folding her own papers beneath, but a single glance proves she's not even capable of completing the very first blank waiting to be scrawled in with his name. thumb brushes across the space, the slightest furrow forming between her brows. )

Wouldn't you rather just fill it out than have me ask you all of these questions? ( most of them are innocuous, but she'd learned from her own that they do get a bit personal. )

[okane]

Why do that when I have a pretty girl right here who can do it?

_{[ Toji does, a lot of the time, speak his mind. Unless it’s something personal. He’s not against making the atmosphere weird, but that’s maybe because he’s socially stunted when it comes to actually behaving. That rebellious streak in him that always did the opposite of what the rest of his clan did bled into his everyday life without him realizing. He was born an anomaly; a defect from the start, so why should he even bother being normal anymore? ]}

Fushiguro, Toji.

_{[ Get writing, Miss Tifa, cause he doesn’t stop talking. ]}

Green. Black. 188cm. 95kg. 36. December 31st. A-Positive.

[promisely]

( the way the compliment so casually drips from his tongue catches her off guard more than anything. it's not as if she isn't used to having those sort of comments thrown into conversation from countless nights spent behind a bar, but they're typically either laced with intent or slurred from a drunken tongue. before she can so much as utter a word his voice greets her again, something low and almost bored — it takes her a moment, but she catches on to the fragmented details, tugging the pen out from its place beneath the clip to fill in each respectively.

he doesn't look 36, despite his considerable size, but she isn't given the opportunity to linger long on such an innocent thought when the rest of the form glares back at her, squared off into different sections. somehow it feels as if the blush that's crept to her cheeks ignites all the further, clearing her throat only to flip the page that's still very obviously not complete, riddled with the likes of: how high is your sex drive? and coming home to find your partner in _____ would turn you on the most. )

I'll, ah, skip some of these. ( does she spare asking him his marital status and if he has any children? anyway, she'll just continue on, filtering through. ) Occupation?

✧ — wriothesley.

[promisely]

( continued from tdm. )

( there's more to the story she's sure, but she supposes this is hardly the place to get to lost to anything sentimental, and as it was, they'd only just met one another. the crooked smile that paints his brims earns one of her own, though it's something even and sweet, a curiosity kindling beneath the surface. she's had a few days to get something closer to settled since she'd arrived, but there's something to be said for the brief breath such a casual conversation allows, gaze straying from his once more to begin wrapping the gauze about his hand. )

I haven't been here long enough to know for sure, but it seems like this place offers plenty of that. ( of course, kaiju couldn't exactly be compared to the thrill of being in a ring. he manages to tug a playful quip from her nonetheless, dipping down to tear the fabric with her teeth. )

There's a rec area on base isn't there? ( the kit didn't have any sort of tape to keep the gauze in place, so she makes do with weaving the end into the many layers til it's snug. ) I don't know much about the ins and outs of boxing, but I've trained in martial arts since I was younger. Some form of it, anyway. If you ever wanted a challenge that wasn't... well, monsters. ( it's offered a bit sheepishly, and... there. once last look-over of her work. it'll have to do for now. )

That should hold until you're back, at least.

[frostfist]

[ She's not wrong, and the comment earns a small laugh, his gaze lifting up to catch hers in approval before dipping back down to appreciate the rest of her handiwork. After so long with only Sigewinne to tend his wounds, it's strange to sit and have someone else patch him up.

But it's not unwelcome, and her personal touch is far preferred to that of the harried nurses in medbay. ]

I suppose you're right.

[ There's a further lift to his shoulders at her offer for a spar, clear interest evident in his eyes as he glances back up, assessing her build and weight, the strength to her grip and the toned muscles that lie underneath her skin. He's sparred with plenty of people here already, but he'll never say no to another. ]

Well, I can hardly say no when a young woman as charming as yourself is offering, now can I? [ He's (mostly) kidding, please don't report him to HR for harassment. ] More seriously, it would be my honor to meet you in the rec room once this is all healed up.

[promisely]

( as if her report would hold any weight when her cheeks ignite with a bright ruby, blinking her startle that's really just her own lousy way of accepting compliments. but before she can stammer out any soft note in reply, he resolves to accepting her invitation — and for the first time since she'd arrived, she feels as if she has something to look forward to. )

That sounds great. ( a beat, and, realizing she's still cradling his palm in her own, she gently releases back to his lap, the smile that'd previously found her lips lingering still. ) I could use someone keeping me on my toes. I'm not really used to having time to idle around.

( tucking the remaining gauze back into the kit and sealing off the alcohol, she seeks out his gaze once more as each of its latches are snapped into place. ) I'm Tifa, by the way.