i'm always running from something

[anciently]

WHO: aerith and tseng
WHEN: mid/late-may
WHERE: the church
WHAT: she'd told rufus she'd check in on him, which was convenient, as she'd planned to do that anyway...eventually.
NOTES\WARNINGS: n/a

"Check on him. When you seek him out." A strange request from Rufus Shinra, and just one piece of an overall strange encounter. When he'd appeared at the church, stiffly maneuvering through as if allergic to the place, it'd confused her, but...when he'd asked to strike a deal, and his part of the bargain involved Tseng?

Curiouser and curiouser.

It's about time anyway. Rufus' ask had been the impetus for something overdue, albeit something she'd been putting off without really knowing why. While she waits for Tseng in the church, squatting down to peer into the bright swath of flowers, she reflects on why it'd taken so long for her to open the lines of communication again.

And...she isn't sure. Not yet, anyway. Maybe actually talking to him with help sort out the mixed feelings. So, Aerith waits.

(It isn't long before she's speaking softly to the flowers: an old habit that will have to die hard, even if these blooms aren't connected to the lifestream.)

Comments

[nonvoting]

The weeks following their time in the labyrinth have been... odd, to say the least. A few days in the hospital recovering had set Tseng physically to rights, his mana nearly recovered and a few lingering scars the only remnants of anything having gone wrong—but the emotional weight of it has lingered, putting him on the back foot in ways he wasn't ready for. Aerith's message had therefore been both surprising and expected—surprising, because she had so adamantly told him to stay away, and yet expected, because why not another strange happening to add to Tseng's growing list?

He's kept an eye on Aerith, of course, despite the way she'd warned him off. Mostly just to make sure she's all right, that she's getting by in her own way in this strange new city on a strange new planet. He's visited the church once or twice, even, although without setting foot inside regardless of Aerith's presence—without her agreement, he wouldn't desecrate it. By all rights, she seems to be doing fine.

So truthfully, Tseng has no idea what Aerith could want with him.

He makes his way down to the church when he's called. This time, unlike the times before, he pushes the door quietly open and steps inside, his feet falling lightly on creaking old floors. There's a hush to the space, a sanctity Tseng respects even if he doesn't understand it. Up the aisle between the pews, and then Tseng stops short of the open space in the transept, full of flowers.

"Hello, Aerith." Tseng seats himself in the first row, maintaining a respectful distance between them. He folds his hands in his lap and watches her, his head tilted slightly in curiosity.

[anciently]

She hears him enter before she looks his way, feeling the old spike of anxiety that she'd developed as a child, as a reaction to having someone from Shinra appear who might try and take her back behind corporate walls. Aerith swallows that down, though, staring hard at the flowers and drawing deep breaths as she collects herself, eventually standing and turning to face him in a swift motion.

"Hey." It's short and simple, as far as introductions go. This is...a really unusual situation, and so there's another lull as she gets her thoughts together.

She meets his gaze. Gives him a furtive once-over.

"Figured we're kinda overdue to catch up." If she could have semi-regular conversations with Rufus, of all people, she can surely do the same with Tseng. Right? "I was...still mad, when you first reached out, but a lot's happened. And we're both here to fight for our world, so...might as well work together."

Call a truce, as it were. There's a tentativeness to her voice that suggests she's testing the waters, watching closely to see how he'll react.

"How are you?"

The question is offered less as a pleasantry and more with the understand that they've all been put through more than a few trials lately: how are you holding up?

[nonvoting]

To... catch up. Tseng's eyebrows lift slightly, the only indication of his continued bewilderment. After how sternly she had insisted that he leave her alone, it's almost difficult for Tseng to believe that she would call him here simply to catch up.

But then again, it's not like she's wrong. She had every right to be angry with him—she always will, Tseng knows that. He is a villain in her story, a role he accepted fifteen years ago when he took the assignment. And yet, at the same time, they are indeed the representatives of Gaia here in this place, and they are, at least in theory, fighting for the same cause. It makes sense for them to align in their objectives.

Truce, indeed. Tseng nods slowly. "All right."

He doesn't entirely know how to answer the question. How is he? Fine. Mostly. Physically, at least, which is the majority of what matters. As far as Tseng knows, Aerith doesn't know he died. He lifts one shoulder in a halfhearted shrug.

"As well as can be expected, I suppose," he says. "How are you?"

[anciently]

She doesn't know he died. Aerith's heard that those who were killed in the labyrinth were restored somehow, but hasn't learned who specifically was affected, and what it was like. Rufus' odd request could serve as a hint, but it's still a leap, and not one she's making.

"'Bout the same." She'd nearly been impaled in that event, had fought monsters to the point of exhaustion, had been endlessly separated from the others she'd come across within the walls. But, in her way, Aerith keeps her expression mild, even brightening a touch as her gaze sweeps the room.

"It's been nice, though. Having a little piece of home around."

Does he feel the same, having Shinra Tower close by? After everything, she has no plans or desire to step foot within its walls, but can certainly understand the comfort it might bring to Tseng and his boss.

There's a lapse in the conversation, and then:

"What's the last thing you remember? From before you were brought here, I mean."

[nonvoting]

The church, as best as Tseng can tell, is a perfect replica of the one in Midgar, nearly down to the drops of water and dust motes in the air. It's similar to Shinra Tower in that regard, and oddly perfect duplicate both reassuring and strange. Is it the same for Aerith, he wonders, to have this version of her church here in the city, just like home and yet untouched by any of the people and events that gave it its significance?

She could have never invited him here, and then she would have had herself a church into which no Turk had ever set foot. But here they are. Tseng's presence can't be undone.

"Good," Tseng says. "I'm glad." Glad that it's nice. Glad that she's glad to have her piece of home, tainted though it may now be. Although he has long since accepted the reality of who he is to her, Tseng still wants her to be happy.

But even under the best circumstances, Tseng is hardly a world-class conversationalist; as awkward as things are between him and Aerith, he finds himself even less able to carry the conversation, and so they do lapse briefly into silence after that. It's broken by Aerith's question, which prompts Tseng to tilt his head slightly as he considers.

"The former President had just died," he says. "We had gathered the board members into the presidential office so that the President—Rufus—could hold his first meeting." Rufus' given name tastes strange on his tongue. "After that, my memories are blank until my arrival here."

Tseng's focus shifts to Aerith, then. "What about you?"

[anciently]

It's a perfect replica in all ways except the one most wouldn't notice: there is no Lifestream flowing beneath it. There's no connection to their planet (naturally). So, while the flowers are there, and they do seem to be growing just fine, there's something missing. Every time she steps within, though it does bring her comfort to be there, it also creates a painful pang with the reminder of what wasn't carried over.

Aerith nods slowly at his reply, thinking back to when Rufus had taken over after his father's murder, and everything that had happened around that. Everything that had happened since. Though it's still unclear to her what, if any, memories of this place they retain if and when they return to Gaia, Aerith is cautious in her own response.

"Bit later than that." She thinks of the events of Midgar, the parade in Junon, the encounter with Hojo on the beach. "We'd gotten to Costa Del Sol, and were heading out of town."

Chasing the hooded figures. Chasing Sephiroth. It brings to mind the fact that there are at least two people here with memories that extend beyond her own: Vincent, who she remembers somewhat but has never met, and Cloud, of all people, who seems to know a lot more than he's letting on.

He hadn't wanted to fill her in, and she hadn't really pushed.

"They brought so many of us... From our world, I mean. Not sure why yet." Why Gaia has so many advocates, and other worlds only have one. Presumably, some worlds have none, or there would be far more people here. Right?

[nonvoting]

Later than that. Tseng has no doubt that the "we" Aerith references means her ragtag group of friends, Cloud and Tifa, Barret Wallace, Red XIII. If they were in Costa del Sol, then they must have escaped the Company's custody, at least for the time being. The gap of possibility is wide, and Tseng can't possibly begin to bridge it based on nothing but his own assumptions. Still, he can't help a brief spark of pride at the idea of Aerith finding a way to break herself free and make a run for it.

"I see." Tseng nods, thoughtful. "You always were more capable than they gave you credit for."

And while he can't say he's thrilled about her choice of company, if for no other reason than the danger they pose to Aerith himself, Tseng knows better than to think she won't find a way. If anyone can, it's Aerith Gainsborough.

The change of subject is welcome, and Tseng sits back against the pew, crossing one knee over the other as he considers the statement. There are a number of them, that much is true—Tseng hasn't been able to figure out the logic of it just yet. "I haven't quite figured that yet, either. Their choices of representative are... interesting, as well."

It would be a breach of confidentiality to admit that he knows the Shinra Electric Power Company is directly responsible for the trouble facing their planet, but there's a wryness in his tone that suggests as much. To choose himself and Rufus, alongside Aerith and Cloud and Vincent, as representatives of Gaia is... an interesting strategy indeed.

"My understanding is that the world known as 'Earth' also has quite a number of representatives. Dozens, perhaps."