From Kally

Anemone/Dominic - "That got lost again."

It'd taken them awhile to get to this point. Being sent away every so often wasn't something Dominic could control anymore then he could control Anemone herself. The problem lay in the way he always ended up getting lost; compass or map, it didn't matter. As time went on, he really did think that he would outgrow it, like learning to read a map was like moving up into another size of shoes. Practice made perfect, though, and he practiced. And practiced. And kept on practicing, until Anemone was helping him pack for his newest mission.

As she sat on the bed and helped fold up his clothes, she felt a lump in one of the pockets. Scrunching the jacket up, she pulled out a small box from one of the pockets.

"Dominic, what's this?" She asked, even as she went to open it, moving it out of the way from his reaching hands as he went red in embarrassment.

"No, don't--" He managed, before she saw the ring inside and squealed in happiness, tackling him in a hug he should have expected. Dominic thought it a fitting way for a proposal; she would be the one to find something that he had already lost three times.


From Wei

Aerith/Rufus - Any

There was something about his suit of white that Aerith found fascinating. Not that there were many chances for something white to be found down in the slums; it got dirty too fast, the first sign of anything on it meant it was dirty, tarnished, not able to be used anymore. She was used to the Turk's uniforms more then she was to his shield of white cloth. The Turk's wore dark clothes, and she knew what they covered. Blood and dirt, more of the former that was spilled then the latter.

When she met Zack for the first time, his uniform of blue and gray made sense as well. Something that hid the dirt stains and sweat from fighting outside of Midgar, from being somewhere above the plate as much as you were in a place below; as much as you were in a place where someone with different eyes talked to you in a foreign language and prepared to shoot you on sight. Aerith heard the talks, heard the rumors; when Rufus was set to visit the opening of a new plant, she decided to stay away from the televisions in the windows and went to get her own pink dress dirty from the life and blood of the earth.

Red and white made pink. When she was out with the rest of Avalanche, the first time she saw a cloud in the big, wide open sky, she wondered how something so pristine and perfect could hide so much danger.


From Doc

Souji/Miku - "Nightmares"

The living situation wasn't perfect. Souji wasn't sure who had decided that the beds needed to be in the same room, right next to each other, really, like a hotel room, but they needed to do something about that. At least Miku didn't seem so upset by it; he had of course offered to stay out on the couch so she could have the room to herself, but she had seen to put a stop to that almost immediately.

So now they slept in the same room, in beds separated by a small path of carpet, two sets of side tables, and with Souji closest to the door, with Miku being closer to the bathroom. After the first few nights, it wasn't that bad anymore. Miku tended to nod off after awhile, and Souji had always been a deep sleeper, turning off the heat to cut down on the costs as the nights got colder, and piling on the blankets, burrowing under them like he was making himself a nest.

That was why, after living together for two weeks, going on three now, Miku was woken up as soon as she heard a sound coming from what otherwise would have been Souji's silent side.

"Souji-kun?" She whispered, hearing nothing for a moment after she spoke until she heard another sound, like that of a hurt animal; soft and weak, but definitely scared. She got up from her bed, silently walking over closer and turning on the lamp so she could see Souji's face twisted in terror, the blankets tangled around him like ropes as he twisted and turned in his bed. She reached out to press a hand to his cheek; it didn't wake him, but he relaxed just a little, eyes moving rapidly under closed lids that were darkened from sleep deprivation.

"Nanako," He gasped, turning to his side and curling up even more. Miku didn't know what he was having a nightmare about, even if it was his sister's name, and she paused, biting her lower lip in thought before climbing into bed with him, thin arms wrapping around his bigger frame as best she could.

"It'll be okay," She whispered, burying her face in the back of his neck. "I have nightmares too."

Ryoji/Rise - "Games"




From Kelly

Daedalus/Raul - "Formidable allies"

There was something to be said about those in the city who you could count on no matter what. Raul knew that as soon as he had forwarded another threat to the rest of the NPP, the responses would come in at varying times, but with two always first; Re-l, of course, would leave a voice mail demanding that he call her back before she came to get him. Daedalus on the other hand would send a reply email five minutes later, once he had read the simple words and gained an understanding of what they were all dealing with now.

What do we plan to do about it, chief?

And when Raul got the email, he always sent one back before reaching for the NV to contact Re-l once again.

Whatever we need to.

Raul leaned back in his chair and smirked. There was something to be said about having such a formidable ally.

Its been YEARS since I've used this thing! But then my spidey senses started tingling while filling out envelopes in the office, and I thought that maybe it'd be a good thing if I could find this thing and give it another try.

...Also sorry to anyone who might be Spiderman out there. Its better than saying "Hey, my telepathic cohort's senses are picking up thoughts in the area." Actually, that sounds kind of cool too.

Anyway, I'm Sean, he's Charles, and together we form the best putting stamps on envelopes team this side of the Hudson river.

( Application for Sean Boyle aka Professor Charles Xavier aka Professor X )