contempsi | 006 || {Video}

006 || {Video}

[There's only one wall and some of the adjacent one completed so far, but Hope's up bright and early this morning, eagerly dragging his brush across the surface before him and illuminating it in a nice calming shade of blue. Apparently he's been mostly good about avoiding unwanted guests around the paint in here, as there's only a few paw-prints scattered on the floor around him!

Well, that track record's about to be broken, because suddenly the door will be flying open. The clatter of a paintbrush dropped in shock and a little squeal of surprise is all the boy manages before two pairs of hands are grabbing him by the arms and shoulders.]

What are you doing!? Get off me! Let me go!

Lightniiiing!

[His thrashing manages to knock over the can of paint nearby, spilling it over the floorboards. Some of it splashes over his journal and obscures most of the camera, but the sounds of yelping and struggling can still be heard as they gradually fade off into the distance.]

( ooc: House Lucky is really... unlucky right now. :|a And with that, I'll be on hiatus for the next week or so! I'll still be working on any threads I have going on or planned from before today to the best of my ability though. ♥ )

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[Zack comes home early today, not long after she sits down with the dog, and... whoa, talk about messy household. As he enters, he's already got a bad feeling- with Aerith taken last week, this is an all-too familiar scene. And that makes him pick up the pace.]

Light!? Hope!? Are you guys-

[And he cuts off, heading into the room and spotting her there. ...Oh.]

[ It's Baldr who looks up first-- and Daisy too, who's laying on the floor a short distance away, posture clearly speaking of self-disapproval despite the beast's generally stoic demeanor. The woman's glance is brief, shot over her shoulder for just a second before she goes right back to a posture that bears a suspicious resemblance to hanging her head.

Yeah, with the house half torn apart and her looking distinctly defeated for once, holding onto her dog that's both never allowed on the couch and far too big by now to even be trying to fit on her lap anyway, it really isn't necessary for her to point it out, but... ]

They took Hope, too.

[ Ouch, Malnosso. Seriously. ]

[Ouch, indeed. Zack pauses for a moment, then heads over there, giving Daisy's head a ruffle as he passes by and sitting down on the couch beside Light, giving her dog the same attention.]

Guess it'll be a pretty empty house for a while.

[And that's just a miserable concept right now. Damn...]

Tch. No, really?

[ Yeah, Zack is hardly the one she should be being snippy with, but... she doesn't really have any sort of outlet otherwise. Her hands keep curling in the dogs fur before she forces herself to release, over and over and over... ]

[If he's bothered by her tone, he doesn't show it. What he does show is concern, noticing what she's doing with her hands there. Reaching out, he rests one of his on the closest of hers, his voice quiet.] ...Light.

[ She freezes at that, shoulders tightening, jaw clenched. Frankly, her entire body might as well be made out of steel wire right now, for all the lack of yield and amount of rigidity she's showing- that's how tense she is. It's a wonder she doesn't flinch away entirely at the touch... or worse, really. ]

... What, Zack?

[He was half-expecting her to try and break his hand or something, so all things considered, he got off pretty easily. He doesn't let go, though, his expression serious.]

We should get out of the house. Go vent on some poor tree. Break something. Sitting here isn't going to make anyone feel better about this.

[Not that breaking stuff will necessarily make anyone feel better, but if she holds the dog's fur any tighter things might start ripping out. Poor Baldr.]

[ Lightning's mood is fluctuating so much right now that it probably wouldn't be surprising if the same thing that causes her to lash out and break a face one moment causes absolutely nothing the next. However... the fact that he's actually being serious does get to her. She scowls but listens, relaxing just barely with a sigh as she stares down hard at his hand.

....

And swallows. Um. ]

Fine. [ And finally she pulls away from the grip, pressing fingertips to the bridge of her nose and one of the rather impressive dark circles beneath her eyes beside it. In a minute, she'll get to nudging the dog off and going to lock him up despite any protests, and grabbing a bag for going out even if she, for some reason, doesn't bother gathering her gunblade as well.

Zack had better be ready to go quick too, because she isn't going to be waiting up. ]

[He's not wasting any time. Since she doesn't have her gunblade with her, he doesn't bother with his sword either, simply following her out the door, letting Daisy outside to watch the house as he goes. She's in quite the mood already, so he doesn't bother her with pointless chatter unless she gives some sort of indication that it's invited, or she shows indecision; he'll just let her lead for the moment, watching with concern.

Damn kidnappings... always messing with people.]

[ Lightning's not one to clam up for the sake of sulking while walking- at least not visibly. She keeps her head up and arms at her sides, very obviously on a mission here, and veeery likely running the 'you do not want to get in my way right now' vibe to several times stronger than even her usual.

As for where she even thinks she's going: no, she's not just wandering aimlessly, which should become obvious fairly soon- maybe even before her direction through the village solidifies. Certainly she's given enough hints towards just how enticing she finds the beach by now? Clear choice for something that throws her off so much.

And the good thing is: even if there's already someone there, there's also miles and miles and miles of more beach anyway- just pick of direction... ]

[And he's just... following along. Her goal kind of surprises him, though in retrospect, not terribly. If he was looking to relax - and actually, he is, just probably not in such desperate need as she - the beach would be a good place to start. Better than getting piss-drunk, anyway.

Still, long silences doesn't suit him, so after a little while of following her, he picks up the pace to walk beside her instead, hands in his pockets.]

How'd you meet him, anyway? If I'm allowed to be nosy.

[Maybe it sucks to be reminded, and maybe she doesn't want to talk- but he finds it more cathartic to just talk things out. If she doesn't like it she can just punch him or stay quiet, whatever. He just... needs to talk to dodge his thoughts most times.]

[ ... That is not a happy story, Zack. Lightning makes a sound in her throat, frowning and glancing over at him but not answering at first, as immediately mired in thought as she is. Of course, it's something that she's gone over in her head a million times already, but figuring out how far to back up, where to even start, takes puzzling out. ]

He and his mom were in Bodhum, when the government started the Purge- not living there, just on vacation. [ Her voice is low and quiet, angry and an odd mixture of tense and subdued when she finally answers. She stops suddenly, crossing her arms. ] But they were rounded up anyway- just because they found a Pulse fal'Cie, the Sanctum decided to get rid of everyone nearby.

Official story was that they were just going to relocate everyone to Pulse, but... [ Yeah, no. It was a bloodbath. She tilts her head to the side, approximating a shrug. Even if you seemed pretty indifferent at the time like Lightning had? It's still not something one really likes to talk about... which is actually why she's saying so much now- she's not really sure how much Zack's even been able to piece together. ] My sister's fiance started a rebellion, to try and save them - to try and save Serah. And... Hope's mom volunteered.

[ Yeah, the implications are probably obvious. ]

[Wow, yeah, that story... sucks. Understatement. Shinra's done some horrible things over the years - human experimentation, worldwide pollution, and war are most prominent - but they've never gone so far as to try exterminate an entire town. ~~not that he knows they dropped a plate on the slums, hurr hurr~~]

...That's messed up.

[He wishes he had a better response to that, but... well. He'd had a feeling that Lightning and Hope hadn't had the best experience before coming to Luceti, but it's not a fun tale to hear.]

[ You think so? It's apparent that Lightning's resentment over this is... powerful. To say the least. She folds her arms up tighter, until her shoulders raise slightly, and her jaw is clenched as she averts her eyes. ]

The people of Cocoon are peaceful - the regular military just fights monsters and keeps the peace, not hurt other people. Not unless it's completely necessary.

[ In other words, no people fighting other people in any sort of organized fashion. The concept of 'war' is completely foreign, save as just stories about something that happened many centuries before anyone currently alive was even born- even Lightning had been pretty surprised, hearing about the sort of stuff people here have gone through... ]

But we were all raised in absolute fear. The idea of anything Pulse-related 'infecting' Cocoon... it's more than enough to make people completely panic. To everyone else outside of it, the Purge seemed necessary.

That's... because of what happens to l'Cie who don't finish their Focus, right?

[It's hard to be delicate about this sort of thing, but he wants to be sure that he's got his facts straight. It's hard to remember stuff from a completely different world than your own.

Still... it stings to say it, knowing what she's already gone through. Just thinking about it makes him angry.]

[ Well, he's not far off the mark, so he's definitely doing a lot better than most would- it's terrifically complicated in a pretty bad way... and again, it's not like Lightning's very inclined to throw the details out unless pressed on it.

As unpleasant as it is though, it's probably better if they're completely on the level; as weird as it seems, she does feel compelled to tell the truth- maybe because as necessary as some things are, she knows that a lot of what she's done isn't 'good.' No matter how much most of it isn't her or any of the other l'Cie's fault, it still feels cheap to her, that she and Hope live with these two other people who are almost stubbornly friendly, and they're carrying around this darkness that could tear apart their own world-- in her case, actively practicing it, even... ]

In a way. [ She shows a brief, bitter smile, averting her eyes, and though she keeps her other hand holding onto it, she raises her right arm, pressing fingers to where the l'Cie mark is burned onto her chest. ] Our Focus... was to destroy Cocoon. It's that that they're afraid of.

...Were you... gonna do it? [It's not a very nice question, but neither is the entire operation- or what this Sanctum group does to innocent people just because they have bad luck. He's not even sure what he'd have done in that situation- after all, he was one of the soldiers who just followed orders during the whole Wutai war, and what did they do wrong, besides what he knows from his superiors?

Plus it's kind of obscure; destroying a secluded city doesn't necessarily mean that everybody has to die, right? ...Right?]

No! [ Her expression twists and she lets out a frustrated, heavy breath, shaking her head to put emphasis on it. ] That's the last thing any of us wants to do.

[ Aaand she steps forward angrily with that, like she means to walk away, but then spins back around, glaring fire at the ground, then back up at Zack's face. ]

We ran. Trying to find another way: removing our Brands... something. Anything it took to save Cocoon... [ She pauses again, looking strained- yeah, having now done what she's about to say indeed makes it harder to voice. ] Even if it meant waiting for time to run out; turning Cie'th without ever going back.

Sorry, sorry. [He winces, lifting his hands in a placating motion. His intention wasn't to offend or judge her, but... yeah, asking something like that leaves pretty uncomfortable implications. He's regretting it already.] How did they know your Focus, though? And why would it be something like that?

... It's what the legends say- Pulse l'Cie are basically made just to destroy Cocoon. [ That's actually sort of a good point, though- one the Pulse l'Cie already asked themselves! However- ] And... it's happened before. Where they almost succeeded.

[ Which is even messier to explain, considering what all is involved. Her emotions are all over the place as she thinks on it more quietly. ]

I guess... it makes sense, then, that they'd want to get the l'Cie out. Not fair, obviously, but...

[Well. When are authority figures or governments fair?]

Right... well...

[ She's not sure what else to say, and her body language loosens slightly in a sort of odd subjection; shoulders dropping, scuffing her shoes in the sand as she shifts her weight, she half turns away again. ]

You asked how we met, and... that's how it was. We look after each other, because... practically nobody else would want to.

[ And now they're in this place, where the only family she has here can just be stolen away without any warning or shred of dignity. She can't just pretend that doesn't hurt. ]

Yeah. It's... [Well, not a nice story, but-] I'm glad you both have someone here with you who understands. It's hard to go without that, you know?

[He's been there- in a worse situation than just here in Luceti, stuck in Nibelheim for those four years. It had been hard enough just being trapped there, and he can't imagine what it would've been like if he hadn't had Cloud around, someone to support and be supported by. Even if Cloud's mind had gone too far downhill by the end of it...

...Either way, it's both better and worse to have someone suffering along with you, but he prefers to think positively anyway, so.]

Thanks for sharing that with me, by the way.

... Yeah.

[ Lightning nods, but then just lets herself fall into silence once again. Kind of an awkward thing to respond to, but she also almost feels... disappointed about something? Like she'd wanted him to say something else too-- but what, she's not sure.

Honestly, it's hard to get her mind around just how lonely she suddenly feels with Hope gone, which is odder still when she'd been... well, not good, but okay at least in the few months before the teen had showed up here too. She frowns, looking out at the stretch of water reflecting the sun and thinking. ]

What about... you and Aerith?

[ Chances are she already knows at least a part of that story, but when it comes down to it, most of what she's heard about his past from him? Sort of came out of that one experiment a while back. The one they don't talk about much. That one. ]

Aerith? Well...

[It's not a sad story, really, so he almost feels guilty about that, but she did ask. Plus it might lighten the mood. And he feels like he missed something there, judging by her look - not that she's an easy read by any means - so maybe he can have another go at it this time.]

I got in a fight with someone I didn't want to, and I ended up falling off the plate. ...Ah, did Aerith explain the plates? It's- Midgar's on two levels, the lower slums and the upper city. The plates are what holds the city above the slums, and I got tossed through a grate and fell into the slums. Kinda crashed through Aerith's roof and landed in her flowers.

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