paixaorpg | [Closed]

When his questions of lodging and destination had been... rather cut short, Soujirou gave a little bit of a polite bow to his companions before departing. Lirin, Riku and Percival, he remembered their names and faces and habits, just in case. However, none of them seemed to really have any idea what was going on. He lingered near them and the Niflheim Gate briefly, toying with the journal's "Messaging" system before giving up and 'shukuchi'ing his way off. Well, it was, to Soujirou, a leisurely run, but to any normal eye he just vanished.

He skidded to a stop a bit of time later, still unsure of how much ground he covered in Paixao. Apparently the island wasn't that big and when he ran he made good time, as it was hardly that much later in the day when he found himself near... what did the map say? J7, the Actua Are hotel and "Cid's Shop". A tug on the kimono made himself a bit more presentable before he looked around a bit. Some of the natives, with their oddly pale features gazed back and he hazarded a smile before his eyes fell on a non-native.

She stuck out like a sore thumb, all dark in this crowd of light. Not to mention her expression carried a liveliness he had yet to see on any of those who dwelled here. Though his encounters had mainly been with the Gatekeepers.

When she paused to take a breath, Tifa felt eyes on her, and instinctively turned to see who it was. Her gaze caught on a dark-haired individual's not too far away from her. Good-looking and relatively well-groomed, it was evident from his unique getup that he was not from here as well.

That, and the friendliness he seemed to exude was a striking contrast from the citizens here. Immediately intrigued, the young woman made her way over to where he was, a genuine smile tugging at her lips. Perhaps he would know something about this Paixao place...?

"Hello," she greeted politely, garnet eyes never wavering from his.

Her greeting triggered a bow, and Soujirou favored her with a warm smile. Judging from her appearance he would have no idea where she was from. Probably not Japan and probably not China if his clothes and Lirin's clothes were any example.

"Good evening~, how are you?" Soujirou practically chirped and it was clear he was in a pleasent mood. . He'd wait for her to respond, see what she'd reveal to him before he revealed anything about himself.

Pleasantly surprised at his cheery tone, Tifa blinked before responding. This individual was...odd, but in a good way. At least, she thought so. "I'm fine, mostly."

Another quick once-over; the young man was most probably not more than twenty years old, and Tifa figured that it wouldn't hurt to make at least a few acquaintances in this strange new city. At the very least, the information network would be widened just a little bit.

Holding out her hand; never forgetting her manners, Tifa returned his smile. "I'm Tifa Lockhart."

"I'm Seta Soujirou." He offered his name, and his smile didn't waver at all, "I hope you regard me kindly in the future." His words were a bit dated, and it seemed like he was speaking formally, with a slight withdrawn tone to his voice.

Soujirou hovered at the edge of what would be considered the right amount of space for strangers to converse. Tifa had been walking like she had a purpose and he would never want to distract her from it.

Tifa paused for a moment, taking in the young man's words and the fact that the smile was still firmly on his face. It was quite becoming, actually, come to think about it.

She had never really met anyone who spoke with such courtesy, and she felt obligated to return the favor, although she wasn't quite well-versed in the art of advanced etiquette. "It's nice to meet you, Seta-san." Surveying him inquisitively, she continued. "You don't look like you belong here, though...where are you from?"

Soujirou let out a small chuckle at her inquiry. Politely cutting himself off, and nodding in affirmation of her statement. "No, I don't think I'm from around here. I think I passed through one of those biiig~ gates a few days ago. Haven't any idea how, though." His hands moved when he talked, along with his face, giving the impression that he was an animated and energetic person. However, for all his movements at the end of his speech he was smiling calmly and obviously waiting for Tifa to tell her story.

Nodding, the young fighter had read people well enough to sense his unspoken question. Despite his energy, she was beginning to sense something more beneath his surface, but just what it was was very much unclear.

Dimissing that little niggling feeling for the moment, Tifa willingly obliged. "I just arrived today; early this afternoon, in fact." she smiled, but it did not reach her eyes. "And I guess I'm pretty much at a loss as to how I got here, as well."

Tilting her head in the direction of Cid's shop, she continued, "Are you here to see Cid? Or are you just passing through?"

He had no idea who Cid was. Soujirou tilted his head to the side, a finger tapping against his chin in a thoughtful manner. Though, his 'thoughtful' expression was easily destroyed by rocking back on his heels and grinning.

"I have no idea who Cid is!" Soujirou responded brightly, but he didn't give a direct answer.

"Oh," Tifa realized. The young woman could not help but be amused by Soujirou's mannerisms. It was strange, to say the least, but he seemed relatively harmless.

...At the moment, anyway.

Gesturing in the general direction to Cid's shop, she smiled. "There's his shop." Looking up at the darkened sky, she looked back at him. "It's getting late; do you have a place to stay for the night?"

If he did, he'd better hurry, in her opinion, before it got too late.

A place to stay? Oh, this was curious. Maybe Tifa was going to stay at Cid's shop. Wait, was she that kind of woman? The kind that stayed at a shop? A quick glance at the shop told him that it didn't appear to be. However, he knew of a lady who sold girls out of the back of her trinket kiosk, so looks weren't much of a cover.

Though, the visual examination of Tifa herself seemed to bely that suspicion. She had too much muscle, he would have thought.

"...Ahahahaha, place to stay?" A clueless expression floated across his face, "...I don't think so~"

"Oh..." Tifa studied him for a moment, absently wondering why he was still so light-hearted. Casting a quick glance at Cid's shop, she wasn't entirely sure if she should invite him over, considering the fact that the place was not hers to begin with, and it was only through Cid's generosity that had landed her a job and lodging.

It would be rude to invite someone else, wouldn't it?

If this Cid was anything like the one she knew back home, she knew he was going to be really annoyed. But there was no way she was going to leave him outside; it was evident that he was relatively harmless, and from the looks of it, probably a little weary, and...

"Um, I'm not sure Cid will like this very much, but maybe you could try asking him for a job...? There might be something for you to do, and he might offer you a place to stay in return. No promises, though."

Oh~~

"I might come just to meet this Cid, though I wouldn't want to impose upon either of you. Being lucky too many times in one day means that someday I'm not going to be lucky at all!"

Not having a place to stay didn't really bother him that much. Soujirou wasn't the kind of person who cared about beds and pillows and things like that. Though he did like to know who was who around where, which had been proving difficult in Paixao. It was always hard to find the right person to follow if you hadn't any idea who was the strongest in the place. Or who to avoid because they were stupid.

With a light nod, she laughed softly at his words. He was by far the most cheery individual she had ever met so far, and she couldn't help but wonder if he felt any other emotion aside from perpetual happiness.

Maybe that was the best way to live life, wasn't it? Smile and laugh even though some things were killing you inside...

Shaking off her thoughts, Tifa Lockhart flashed him a genuine smile. "Well then, let's get going, shall we? And you can tell me more about yourself while we walk!"

Soujirou nodded in response to her smile, and he'd let her lead the way. Afterall, he had no idea where, exactly, this Cid lived or worked or... well anything.

"...Well, I'm from Japan!" He said brightly. Which might not mean anything to her, and even if it did... Soujirou had found out that most people who were also from Japan weren't from his Japan at all.

Japan? ....That was another place she had never heard of before. It seemed like there truly were an entire melting pot of cultures that existed within this city, and not for the first time, she wondered if there was anything to this. Surely there was some kind of ....force at work?

"I'm from Midgar," Tifa offered nonetheless, as she caught sight of what was unmistakably Cid's shop in the distance. A couple more minutes, and they would be his doorstep. "I'm afraid I don't quite know where this...Japan is."

Come to think of it, it was very curious, indeed. Evidently, Cid nor Vincent seemed to remember her, Cloud was suffering from amnesia - or so Zack, who was supposed to be dead back in her world - said.

Did they come from separate dimensions, then?

Midgar?

"...Midgar? I've never heard of it. I guess we must be from very different places~" He turned the name over in his head. Possibly German? Not Japanese, that was for sure, too many hard sounds. Much like all those 'ekkusu' names, very hard to say.

"Indeed we are," Tifa replied quietly, mastering a sigh. She had to find a way to get back home, and so far, things were not looking too good. For the moment, at least.

Stopping at the door of Cid's shop, she felt her pulse quicken ever so slightly. It was strange to meet a friend who didn't remember her; that was, if he was the Cid that she had been friends with. "And...here we are," Tifa said, as cheerfully as she could manage; something which was getting a little difficult at this time.

Here goes nothing, she thought as she smiled back at Soujirou before she rapped on the door, hoping that he wouldn't be too angry at the fact that she had brought someone else along.

Soujirou waited patiently. This was rather good, a place instead of just outside. Tifa-san seemed very nice as well. He wondered what this Cid was like. Cid. Not a very common name in Japan, but neither was Tifa. Neither was Paixao a very Japanese sounding place, so that about settled that thought.

[OOC: I think Cid should be entering the thread once Cid-mun finishes hers! :D <3]

It was plently dark enough outside that the shadow of a man was able to approach unseen, the only sound made from the breeze billowing out his cloak. As Tifa was tapping on the door the taller frame of a man stood behind the two, almost towering over them.

"So this is Cid's shop," he said looking up at the sign. It wasn't really a surprise to know that the older man may have se up shop in such a weird place as this. Cid was quite the resourceful man.

"Good evening, Tifa," he said, bowing slightly. Most likely he would scare anyone who wasn't used to see him enter like that. Vincent turned to the male and bowed to him, pulling the dark locks of hair from his eyes as he straightened his back.

"Good evening to you," Vincent said to the male. "I am Vincent Valentine. And you are?"

Just when he thought he’d had some time to himself – and some time to sit, relax, and enjoy some tea – there was a knock at the door.

It never ended, did it? Paixao was chock full of weirdos, a lot of which showed up regularly at his shop. Weirdos in and out, people in and out and up and off the face of the earth. It was real hard keeping track of who was where and what was going on. Getting his shipments was confusing enough. He didn’t need any more jackasses or know-it-alls showing up.

Wait. Maybe this one wasn’t a weirdo. He had recently talked to a prospective employee. A girl who could run his bar, perhaps. He had the liquor ready and everything. Downstairs was all cleaned up, looking sort of presentable after all the work he’d put into it. He’d ended up having to do most of it on his own, as his ~~lazy-assed hangers-on~~ helpers just seemed to vanish. Well, here’s to hoping that this Tifa would hang around longer. His ol’ nerves could hardly take the stress any longer.

Setting his tea down, Cid got up and stretched a bit before heading for the door. Time to see who was out there. He walked to the door and checked out the window to see who was out there. Nice lookin’ young girl with dark hair and clothes. Had to be that Tifa. Some others were with her. The kid with the funny robes might be a customer. Cid’d never seen him before.

But the other… Cid remembered him all too well! He ought to run and find his lance. That was the crazy guy who had broken his roof! Like hell he’d open the door for that!! That caped bastard ought to have known better than to show up again!!

Cid made an annoyed grunt. “ONE MINUTE!” he yelled through the door, scrambling away. His store was full of odds and ends. His lance – or one just like it – had to be around there somewhere! He’d have to hurry or the damn thing’d break down his stupid door. He was frankly TIRED of making repairs every blinking moment of the day!

"So this is Cid's shop. Good evening, Tifa,"

Jumping slightly at the familiar, but sudden voice that came up behind them, Tifa whirled around to see Vincent, her startled expression melting into a smile. Actually seeing a familiar figure in Paixao - no matter how stoic he was - comforted her somewhat.

"Vincent!" It was a good thing that he'd remembered her as well. She had spoken to Aerith through the journals earlier, and she'd mentioned something about...Hollow Bastion, a place Tifa was sure was not located in the Slums, or anywhere else in her world, really.

The dark-haired gunslinger was like she'd always remembered, tall, dark, brooding, and most importantly, a friend. "It's good to see you,"

“ONE MINUTE!”

The grumpy bellow was enough to draw her attention, and Tifa fought not to laugh. It was an absurd notion, really, but he sounded so much like the Cid Highwind she knew that she couldn't help but be amused. I wonder if this Cid curses just as fluently.

"Likewise," he said to Tifa, nodding. Searching through some those journals, Vincent had found it pecuilar that his friends and people he knew, didn't seem to know him. Not to mention, people said they knew him, when he had no memory of ever meeting them.

Then came Highwind's voice from inside, and Vincent found himself almost grinning. Not only had he just met up with Tifa, there was Highwind, who he felt like it had been ages since he had last seen him. Too busy with his airships back home, it seemed.

"Highwind," Vincent said through the door, his voice actually containing a hint of friendliness, that wasn't often expressed. "open the door already," he said, barely containing a smile.

Soujirou offered Vincent an owlish blink before carefully bowing to him in response. He hadn't quite expected the other to appear and wondered if there was some trick to it. The whole way Vincent carried himself and all, it was a bit nifty. Soujirou never managed to keep his presence so ... not forboding, but that was a close enough word.

"...it seems that Cid-san is in~" Soujirou announced, rather stating the obvious. Then he continued to regard Vincent with a bit of unabashed interest.

Oh yes, where were her manners? Silently appalled at herself, Tifa hurriedly explained, seeing Soujirou's look of interest, "Seta-san, this is a friend of mine, and as you already know, his name is Vincent Valentine."

Feeling strangely stupid, but going ahead with it anyway, she turned to the ex-Turk. "Vincent, this is Seta Soujirou, I bumped into him earlier."

Boxes and boxes and boxes and more damned boxes of things that eventually had to go out onto the sales floor. That was part of the fun of running a variety store. So much to sort through. And he could never find what he needed when he needed it! ’If only those damn kids had hung around! But noooo, they had to go exploring! Go to check their rooms, they’re gone! Right vanished!’ He’d never believed it before, but good help really was hard to find.

What was he looking for again?

Oh, right. His lance. Or any weapon, really. The caped guy was just outside his door, and this time he’d show him what for!

The search was irritating, and so Cid settled for a broom. It would bean someone over the head well enough. And then if it broke, then there were splinters that were always easy to get stuck in someone’s skin. It’d make a great first impression on Tifa, of course. Show her that she was working for a hale, powerful, always-in-control man who made sure his store was safe and that all grudges were settled!

Feeling like a bit of a superhero, Cid scrambled back to the door and flung it open. He stood, tall and proud, just behind the doorway so none could enter. He may have appeared old to some, but his hands were still deft. He spun the broom in his hands, handling it like his better-balanced lance. He did some tricky maneuvering over and under his arms, and then struck a defensive stance. Intimidating, of course!

He frowned deeply, eyes trained on the caped man. “You!” he snarled. “Oh, so you thought leaving some money and a cutesy little apology note would cut it? Oh, no! You should have shown up to do the repair work yourself, son!” He pointed the business end of the broom at Vincent. “And now you show up like any old customer! Dammit! You ain’t comin’ in here, got it?”

"Hello Highwind," he said with a slight smile. Back before even coming to Paixao he hadn't seen or talk with Cid for quite sometime. They both had their own things to do, and had drifted apart. And so when Cid opened the door he had no reason to expect hostilities.

The first thing he did was look at the other member of their party, the one he didn't really know.

"Did you do something?" he asked him, turning away from Cid. Vincent had no idea he was the one who was on the buisness end of a broom.

"What happened Highwind?" he asked, looking at Cid, finally noticing that the pilot's eyes were locked onto his.

"You mean me?" he asked Cid, looking confused. "What did I do?"

......Okay.

Tifa had been glad to see Cid's familiar face - even though he didn't know who she was - and was about to greet him when he twirled a broom like he always did with his Venus Gospel and levelled it at Vincent.

The young fighter watched, wide-eyed at the rant that followed, and she looked over at Vincent curiously, wondering what Cid had been talking about.

Judging from Vincent's reaction, it was clear that he didn't know what was going on, either, and if Tifa's knowledge of Cid's infamous temper was correct, he was probably going to hit someone soon, or something.

Deciding that she should probably try to smooth things over to prevent things from getting bloody, she stepped forward and offered Cid her sweetest, most placating smile, a hand resting on the broom that was pointed at the red-caped man. Homicide had to be avoided; at all costs.

"Hey, Cid. Thanks so much for offering me a job. I'm not sure what Vincent did, but since I'm here, why don't I help with the repairs and everything? My friend Soujirou's here with me as well, I sure hope you don't mind having a pair of extra hands around..."

A broom.

Soujirou gave the ... weapon a look, and then craned his neck around to get a better perspective on Cid. This man was certainly interesting, if not a little loud. Oh well, at least he was lively! Both Vincent and Tifa seemed to know him but he didn't seem to know either of them. Or at least very well.

The tenken clasped his hands together in front of him, rocking back on his heels a little with a smile. "Nice to meet you!" He chirped.

Oh, that almost did him in. After he spoke, Cid growled and prepared to give the caped guy a hearty dose of well-deserved broom whapping.

But he loosened his grip on the broom when Tifa came up, placating any hostility left in him. He twisted the broom up and away in a relaxed hold, still looking hard at the caped newly-amnesiac. Well, if Cid himself had been faced with such awe-inspiring power, he too might choose to “forget” everything in hopes of lenience. Well, this guy wasn’t getting off so easily. At least not while Tifa was around.

He wiped at his nose, tipping it up to look down it at Cape Guy. “I guess that would work just as well,” Cid said at length. “Cape Boy made a flamboyant exit via the ceiling the other day and now there’s just a board resting over the hole. I’d make proper repairs myself, but there’s been a steady stream of wiseasses in and out of the place ever since. I’ve hardly had time to take care of myself, let alone a damn hole in the roof.”

To Tifa’s mention of the third party, Cid glanced at him again. The one with the funny clothes. He grunted in Soujirou’s direction. “Sure, he can help out,” he told Tifa. “I can’t refuse that. But I won’t have any freeloadin’, got it? I’ve had freeloadin’ up to my friggen earlobes. If he decides to stay here, he’s gotta work for his keep. Anyhow, you can start on the repairs whenever you want. I got a big toolbox and all the supplies you’ll ever need in there. I’ll show you around later, after I take care of Bozo here.”

Back to the freak. “But you. I will not let you in this store again, boy. You done enough! You stay out there and brood or something.” He frowned. “If you came here to actually buy somethin’, get one of these two to pick it up for you. But if you try anything funny, I’ll give you a broom bashin’ you won’t soon forget!”

An exit via the ceiling, huh? Tifa paused at that, relaxing slightly as Cid brought the broom back to his side. She didn't think she would be very much up to cleaning off bloodstains from the immediate vicinity - and more importantly, she probably was going to need that particular broom as well in the near future.

Glad that she had something to do at last, the young woman flashed the gruff pilot a bright smile at his response, dimmed slightly by what he'd followed up with him taking care of Vincent. Apparently, he'd made a hole in Cid's roof?

She paused, running through her options. She knew that she was already imposing on him with her new friend, but Vincent really didn't look like he remembered what had happened.

And speaking of what had happened....Cid's earlier words registered once again in her mind. He didn't have enough time to take care of himself - and considering Shera most probably wasn't known to this Cid...

Men.

She rolled her eyes, maternal instinct kicking in once again as she entered the shop briskly. For all their testosterone and macho-isms, boys would always still be boys; they would never bother about the truly important things in life.

"Thanks for your generosity, Cid. I assume you haven't had proper dinner yet, right? So why don't I make you dinner first, then you can speak with Vincent later while I fix your roof?"

Vincent just stood in the doorway, confused. What was Highwind talking about? He didn't even think it was possible to exit through a roof, much less that he had done it in the recent past. Vincent had only been in the city for a few days, and had never made it this far into the city.

"What are you talking about, Highwind?" the tall man asked, his hand moving to rest on what he thought was his friend's shoulder.

"Is this a joke?" he asked, tilting his head. "It's me, Vincent Valentine? Don't you remember?" Vincent was actually a little afriad. He had heard older men sometimes lost their memory like that, but was Cid really that old?

The raven haired man turned to look at Tifa, with a questioning look in his face. Without needing to say a word the look asked her what the hell was going on here?

Soujirou watched it all with a fairly blandly cheerful expression. Well, he hoped that if they killed each other he wouldn't have to move the bodies. Moving bodies was so difficult and he'd rather just burn them - much more effective.

"...Tifa-san, do you want any help?" So instead of sticking his butt into the two men's problems he'd assist Tifa. Afterall, paying for room and board through labor he understood quite well.

Just as clueless, Tifa responded to Vincent's gaze with an honestly confused expression. She had no idea what Cid had been talking about, but she had been trying her best to prevent a scene, considering the fact that a small handful of those strange people had stopped and were watching the 'drama' unfold.

Really, she was already here, wasn't she? Everything would be fixed and all would be right with the world!

Dangling the prospect of a piping hot dinner in Cid's face was one of the tactics Tifa had been forced to employ - only it wasn't so much of a coercion; people who were not able to take care of themselves for whatever reason had immediately warranted her attention.

Flashing Soujirou a grateful smile at his offer, she nodded, already heading inside and silently asseesing her surroundings, her gaze drawn to the ceiling to inspect the damage. "I would appreciate your help very much indeed, Seta-san."

She might be handy at doing alot of things, but fixing the roof while preparing dinner was definitely out of her range of abilities.

Cid glanced down at where the hand lay on his shoulder.

Then he looked back at Cape Guy with a narrow-eyed glare.

“WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’RE DOIN’?” he exploded, quickly shoving Vincent’s hand off his shoulder and snatching up the broom once again, pointing it directly at Vincent’s chest. “Now, I’m no expert here, but I don’t think I’ll EVER buddy up with someone who got pissy enough to change into some weird, flashy creature, yell at a group of innocents, and then fly outta my goddamn roof!! And then didn’t even have the guts to apologize to my face!!! No. You stay back, boy. I’m havin’ nothin’ to do with you!” Cid seethed. The NERVE! Trying to be friendly after that show!! Faking amnesia was one thing, yeah, but going THAT far? Vincent was lucky that Cid’s hot glare hadn’t burned a hole through his face!!

Cid knew Tifa was still nearby from her voice. “Tifa, you know this joker, right? Tell ‘im to hit the road!!” Dinner could wait. Justice had to be served before food.

Vincent didn't move the slightest, only letting his hand move from Cid's shoulder to cross both his arms over his chest. So that's how it is? Cid, the man whom he knew quite well and had once been friends with, was now an enemy? It was difficult to realize but Vincent understood well enough.

"I see," was all he said. Uncrossing his arms he tossed his cape out with his hand and turned on his heel. "I'll be going then," Vincent said stoically, and started off toward the direction of the hotel that he knew was nearby.

Tifa stopped in her steps, wide-eyed. When she'd said dinner, she had initially thought that Cid would leave Vincent alone for a moment, get fed to appease his foul mood, then breach the subject again.

Striding over to the door to where Vincent was walking off, Tifa called out, "Vincent, wait!"

Turning to Cid, she nodded. "Yes, I know him. He's a friend of mine; I'm not sure what happened between you guys, but instead of driving him away, why don't you let us fix your roof for you and everything? Besides, I'm sure he didn't really mean it."

Crashing a hole through Cid's roof meant that Vincent had assumed his demon form - Chaos, probably? - and what he did under the effects of the monster could not be blamed on him.

Placing a hand on Cid's arm, Tifa continued quietly. "I don't think he knew what he had been doing...I'm sure he won't tear a hole in your roof again. Besides," she flashed him a bright smile. "Seta-san and I are going to fix it, so let's forgive and forget, okay? It won't do you good to get so angry, anyway."

Soujirou just watched it all dispassionately. He found Cid-san to be overly loud and exert too much useless energy. Vincent-san also seemed to border on useless. Tifa-san seemed the oly one who was moderately useful and the only one with a head on her shoulders. Figuritively, of course.

"You could just kill him,"

... it was a joke.

...

Really.

Cid’s chest had puffed out with pride – and his ego had grown comparably as well – when his slick moves and biting speech had scared away Cape Boy. He hadn’t even had to resort to using the mighty power of the broom! No blows. That had to be a new record. See, Tifa? Ol’ Cid can handle himself nicely!

…Oh.

Cid’s mood stepped down a few notches once Tifa had explained things. Friends, of course. Friends with the creepy shape-changing cape-wearing person…thing. Cid couldn’t keep his employees – or future employees, as the case was – from socializing with whomever they liked. Tifa just had poor taste. And there’s no accounting for taste, ever.

“He’d better not tear another hole in the roof, anyway,” Cid grumbled, calming down and stopping his relentless glare at Vincent’s retreating back. Then he heard Seta’s comment. “Hey,” he said, turning to look at the mostly quiet member of the gathering. “I like the way you think.” Cid grinned and headed back into his store. Maybe this would work out for the best after all.

“So, Tifa, your offer of dinner still good, or d’ya want to get right into the heavy labor?” Cid began puttering about, looking for his cooking supplies. They were in some box or another. What wasn’t in this place, anyway? It said a lot that his best pans and pots were still in boxes when he’d been in this place how long? “Kitchen’s upstairs, ‘long with the bedrooms,” Cid said. “I’ll show you around after I get some food in me.”

Vincent had no problem finding food and shelter elsewhere, and with much less yelling, so he fingured it wouold be much less troublesome to go find a simple hotel somewhere. Staying with this imposter Cid didn't seem to have any advantages, but it seemed Tifa was unlikely to changer her mind. And if he left Tifa alone in a dangerous place Cloud would be likely to never fogive Vincent.

So when Tifa told him to stop, he did. But he just stood alone in the middle of the empty street, arms crossed, cape blowing in the wind. He just turned his head back, his dark red eyes focusing on Cid.

"Hm?" was the only sound he made. It really didn't matter if he was heard or not, Cid knew he had the Ex-turk's attention.

Tifa's eyes bugged at Soujirou's comment, and she turned to him. It was a joke...right? She really didn't think that anyone should try to kill Vincent. Really. There was that little issue of him possessing four really, really angry demons and all...

When Cid replied to Soujirou, Tifa couldn't help but suppress the urge to roll her eyes. Yeah. Cid was Cid, no matter which world he came from. Briefly, she wondered if there were any other Tifas she hadn't known about, then decided that it would probably give her a massive headache, and really, it would be wise not to think about that.

"I'll make dinner first, of course!" Tifa told him easily. "It'll be awhile before I finish up with the roof works, and you must be starving." Really, did men not know the basics of taking care of themselves?

Tifa paused, her gaze drifting to the ex-Turk. It would be rude of her to invite him in; this was not her house, but she couldn't just let him leave, right? She knew that he was perfectly capable of taking care of himself, but still...

Even then, it was obvious that Cid didn't like Vincent, and there she was, stuck between the two of them and not quite knowing what to do. She didn't want to be rude, and on the other hand, she felt bad for leaving Vincent out.

There has to be some kind of compromise, right?

Soujirou just smiled in response. He really had nothing to do, and unless directed he probably wouldn't do anything. Not like he didn't want to help, it was just better if people directed him. Not very useful unless you wanted a message delivered or someone dead... but at least he excelled at both of those!

[ Is someone going? ]

Cid finally found his pots and pans. He dusted some off with the edge of his shirt. That pan there was dented, and the other pot was chipped. They worked just fine, though. He’d have to get new ones some other time. Besides, why replace when they were still usable? He busied himself setting up things in the kitchen, and then returned to where the others were gathered.

“’Kay, Tifa, all the cooking stuffs’re ready. I have a good selection to choose from. Food’s all fresh in the fridge. Whatever you want to make, go for it,” Cid said, nodding with satisfaction. “’m easy to please.” He looked at Soujirou, “Unless you have some sorta preference, in which cause you oughta tell Tifa.”

Through the open door, he noticed Vincent’s silhouette. He was unmistakable. Why had he stopped? Ah, if only Cid were a javelin expert. Cape Guy would be split straight down the middle. Without a word to the other two, Cid went to the door, shut it sharply with his foot, and flipped the sign over on it so that it now read, “CLOSED.” If that wasn’t a clear enough hint that all others were unwelcome, nearly nothing else could.

“Now,” Cid said, much brighter than before, “let’s get dinner cookin’!”

[Closed]

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[ OMG. Haha, great Cid you're playing! :D ]

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