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[asphodels]

"This is Aerith! I'm not here, but I'll get back to you!"

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[asphodels]

[ She scoffs, hitting his arm gently. ]

We need to get him something nice!

[moseyin]

[u can hit his arm hard u know, hope else he gonna shake this confusion status effect] Okay, well you'd definitely be the expert for that. [Gestures around the shop,] And you've got a lot to choose from. Anything grab your attention?

[asphodels]

[ She can't hit anything hard, Cloud, she has the lowest attack in the game. ]

Hmm. [ She starts to move around, considering here and there, incredibly thoughtful. ] I want to find something... [ What's the word... ] Memorable.

[moseyin]

[ya why u think ur always the one slapping ppl awake in a fight, girlie] Memorable, huh...? [Flicks through a T-shirt rack. What size would Zack even wear? ....actually he can't read these sizes anyway, probably best just to guess. Like, two sizes up from him, at least.] Something that reminds him of you, then. Maybe pink?

[asphodels]

[ Look sometimes u gotta main healer she didn't make the rules. ]

Something pink! I bet he'd wear it. [ She pushes the racks along before - aha. ] What about this?

[moseyin]

[CL
APS HAND OVER MOUTH.] ...holy shit. [IT'S PERFECT. AERITH, HOW]

[moseyin]

Hold on- hold on, he needs something else. [Rummages in a nearby bin until he finds a matching headband.]

[asphodels]

[ Aerith gasps. Loudly. ]

Cloud! It's perfect!

[moseyin]

He likes his hair back, right? [But ok but that shirt is 10000% more perfect] C'mon, let's get 'em wrapped up.

[asphodels]

Wait, wait! One more thing. [ She dashes off, and when she comes back she has something in her hands. ] Perfect!

[moseyin]

Wait, wait wait. One last addition. [Plucks this from a nearby rack.] This.

[asphodels]

[ She bursts out laughing, leaning forward to take all of them together. ]

Perfect! I'll go get them.

[moseyin]

Hold on, I wanna get the stuff picked out. [Also, he sees something he wants to pick up...] I'll uh, I'll catch up in a sec. You go on ahead.

[asphodels]

[ Squints. ]

Mm, okay. I'll meet you in line!

[moseyin]

[Cloud ends up significantly further behind her in line, which was his plan anyway because he wanted part of this to be a surprise.

When he finally catches up to Aerith just outside the gift shop, he holds out a wrapped package for her to take.] Here. It's uh, it's like a room-warming gift, I guess.

[asphodels]

Cloud! [ She moves her bag of gifts on her arm, taking the wrapped package. ] Can I open it now?

[moseyin]

Uhhh sure- no, wait. [He points over toward the ferris wheel.] Let's get on that, first.

[asphodels]

[ You're making her wait? Cruel, cruel man. ]

Okay. Let's go before we get distracted again.

[moseyin]

[That's him, Cloud "Cruel Man" Strife.

At least the wait for the ferris wheel isn't nearly as long as the wait for the roller coaster; they're on in a matter of minutes, climbing up into an open air car and looking out over the spread of the park and surrounding city; even with how high this thing goes, it doesn't even get close to matching the top of the tallest building.]

Sorta seems like Midgar, doesn't it? [Cloud wonders, staring out over the cityscape.] Minus the plate. But I guess you don't need a plate to have slums.

[asphodels]

[ Aerith finds it a little shocking how few people actually want to ride the Ferris Wheel, but she soon realises that since it's such a couple-y thing... Maybe not many people are here on a date like she is. It makes her all the more thankful for Cloud - and, this time, she moves and sits right beside him, leaning over him so she can see the view.

It's nicer, she thinks, than the distance from before. ]

You just need people thinking they're better than you are. [ Aerith shakes her head. ] It doesn't make it less beautiful, though, does it?

[moseyin]

No, it doesn't. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and all that. [Being able to think what you want, that's a precious commodity that few people have ever had taken away from them. Cloud is perhaps a little more grateful for free will than he should be, sometimes, but he'll never take it for granted.] ...okay, you can open it now.

[asphodels]

That sounds almost poetic. [ But Aerith is captivated by the sight before her and when she breathes out it's with a soft smile. It's Cloud that brings her back and she softens, hands pressed on the package. ] Here?

[moseyin]

Well. I read it on the front of a magazine, so don't be too impressed. [Seriously.

He sits back in the chair, making their cab sway slightly as the wheel crawls to a stop with them near the top of the arc. He gestures toward the package, a little embarrassed, but more interested to see her reaction. Aside from the two-picture frame, there are a couple disposable cameras in there.]

[asphodels]

But you remembered it, didn't you?

[ Still, she does to unwrap the gift, slowly, and when it's revealed her eyes widen. It's something so simple and yet it means a lot to her - and she leans close, tilting herself up and pressing a kiss to his cheek, just close enough for it to be almost the corner of his mouth. ] Cloud!

[moseyin]

Wh- hey, look, [braves a kiss back onto her cheek, face pink.] You asked for the cameras, right? And three walls' worth of photos. You can put your two favorites in this so you don't have to pick. [His own way of offering his blessing with Zack. It's...still weird, but he doesn't hate it, is all he's trying to say. He knows Aerith has more than enough room in her heart for them both.]