Sunny Days, Broken Materia {Ghostwolf}

[darkest_fate]

The glorious sun of Costa Del Sol beat down upon the flower girl from Midgard. Aerith squinted into the distance, noting the sparkle of the light upon the water. It all looked quiet picturesque and lovely, just perfect for a romantic getaway. of course, they were on the run from Shinra and chasing Sephiroth. That killed most of the romance. As if it mattered, the one person who Aerith wouldn't mind spending more time with had ran off to train or something. The man just couldn't relax. At least Zack could manage that.

Sighing, Aerith sat down on the beach, staring at the waves. She hadn't even bothered with a bathing suit, mostly because she didn't have one yet. Instead she wore her usual dress, the long pink fabric trailing on the sand. Her hands dug into the ground, and it was then that she remembered something. Reaching into her pockets, Aerith withdrew a small, pink materia. Yuffie had found it and actually given it over to Aerith. That alone was suspicious enough, even though the ninja had insisted it was an extension of good will or something. Yuffie had also said that it would probably be best if Aerith used it, even hinting at a few targets. Apparently it was supposed to be a charm materia. It sounded appealing, but Aerith didn't know if she really wanted to try an unknown materia.

"Besides, I don't even know what I"m supposed to use it on," muttered Aerith. She was about to slide it back into her pocket when she heard someone walking toward her. Turning, Aerith saw the familiar form of her fellow fighter, Tifa. The girl blinked, and decided to go ahead and wave the other girl over. Maybe Tifa would have some idea about the materia. Even if she didn't, company was better than being alone.

 

[Ghostwolf]

It would be good to be able to relax for a while. Just some time to do what they wanted to do, forget about the real matters at hand. Forget about Sephiroth, forget about the grief of those they had left behind, of those they had lost, Biggs, Wedge, Jessie, those who hadn’t been quick enough to escape Sector 7 when the plate fell. At least, that was the plan; undoubtedly it wouldn’t be that easy. At least she might be able to get somewhat of a suntan while they were here.

And so Tifa headed for the beach and the clear waves of the ocean, the sun beating down on her bare shoulders, a rolled up towel held under her arm. She stood for a moment, looking around the beach, feeling the sand under her feet. Her eyes then drifted across Aerith sitting, looking at something in her hands. Tifa frowned slightly, seeing Aerith was still in her pink dress, unlike herself who was wearing a dark bikini, which was surprisingly somewhat respectable, covering a large amount of her substantial breasts. However, it did not offer the same amount of coverage to the rest of her body, her long slender legs, hiding the strength within them, leading up to her pert, athletic rear, Her flat, toned stomach holding only slight muscle definition, and her arms only showing a portion of the power they held. A myriad of faded scars marked her skin, some bigger than others, received from the various conflicts she had participated in, they did not distract from her beauty though.
Tifa sighed softly and began walking towards Aerith, that girl really needed to loosen up.

She smiled at Aerith as the girl turned, blinking, before beckoning her over. She continued to walk towards her, sand shifting under her feet, warm to the touch. “Hey” she said, once she was near, unrolling her towel and sitting down on it with a light thump. She smiled, brushing a lock of hair away from her face as the rest hung loose down her back. The sun felt wonderful on her skin, bright and warm, and it caused her eyes to seem a more reddish shade that usual. Tifa looked around, glancing at the other people on the beach. “All on your own?” she asked, smiling softly. “Where are the others?” her voice, curious and warm.

 

[darkest_fate]

As Tifa drew closer, Aerith began to have second thoughts about inviting her. As usual, the fighter wore something much skimpier than the flower girl, and as usual it felt like far more eyes and attention were on her. There weren't even that many other people at the beach, and the people that mattered most to Aerith (i.e. Cloud) weren't even present, yet still the girl couldn't quite shake the feeling that she was outmatched. At least relations had been friendly. Plus Tifa was smiling, which was always a good sign.

"Yep, all on my own today," returned Aerith. She returned the smile as well, waving a hand about her to further confirm her lonely status. "The others are out and about. I think Cloud and Barett are off training somewhere. Red was resting. Yuffie was here earlier, she gave me this," Aerith dug the materia out of her pocket and held it up so Tifa could see it. The sunlight from the beach caught the brilliant pink stone, almost making it appear as though it were glowing. "She said it was a charm materia, but didn't tell me anything else." Aerith frowned, "I'm a little worried though. It's not like Yuffie to just give materia."

Realizing that they'd only been talking for a few seconds and already Aerith had entered serious conversation, the girl sighed. She smiled up at Tifa, rolling her eyes. "Sorry, I guess I've just had a lot on my mind lately. I'm still not used to all this, you know. I wasn't a regular member of AVALANCHE, like you and Cloud."

Yes, that was still a bit of a contending bit between them, but Aerith shifted, trying to put it behind her. They were on a sunny beach without a monster or Shinra rep in sight. It was time to relax, not worry about silly little things.

 

[Ghostwolf]

Tifa lay down as she listened to Aerith talk, still smiling. There was no reason why she shouldn’t at least try to be friendly towards her. They had to fight together after all, and it wouldn’t do not to trust each other, or hold grudges. Even if they were after the same thing; Cloud. And it was just like him to go off training, when they had time to just sit back and relax.

She kept her eyes on the ocean as Aerith continued to speak, informing Tifa of where the others were, not quite letting her guard down lest something like what happened at Junon occur. When she heard speak of Yuffie, she glanced at Aerith and the pink materia glowing in her hand. “Well, the girl is a little strange, but I think she has good intentions, mostly good anyway” Her voice was soft, almost drowsy, as she lay in the sun, her head tilted back exposing her slender neck.

Seeing Aerith roll her eyes, Tifa smiled at her, perhaps she was beginning to relax, to become less serious, but then she spoke of AVALANCHE, and Tifa’s smile turned into a slight frown. “I don’t think there is an AVALANCHE anymore Aerith” she sighed, her mind thinking of Jessie, Biggs and Wedge again. “There is only Barret and I left. Cloud is well…Cloud is Cloud” she laughed slightly, brushing a lock of hair from her face.

She lay down again, sighing quite happily, her breasts bouncing ever so slightly as she did so. Here, in this seaside resort, the troubles they had faced and had yet to face seemed so distant. And then it finally sunk in what Aerith had said. Sitting up abruptly, Tifa stared at her.

“What kind of materia did you say?” she asked, her voice curious and not as soft as before. “Did you say…Charm materia? I didn’t know that really existed, I just thought it was a story, like a fairytale.” And if Aerith possessed it, she could use it on Cloud, and he wouldn’t be able to help but pay attention to her. That wouldn’t be good.

 

[darkest_fate]

"I think you're probably right there," agreed Aerith, her own voice relatively breezy. There was no reason to suspect Yuffie, and everyone who joined their little group seemed to have their own agenda anyway. Even Aerith couldn't quite admit to wholly altruistic reasons for her traveling. Again her mind drifted toward a certain blonde ex-SOLDIER, which of course made her think of another ex-SOLDIER even further into her past. Her mind had just started drifting when Tifa continued.

'I suppose. Sometimes it still feels like it's there though,' insisted Aerith. Or maybe she was just feeling that lifelong bond that Tifa and Cloud seemed to have. Something that seemed to stretch back throughout the years, to some distant past that Aerith wasn't a part of, nor ever could be. Oddly enough, her mind kept wandering down these dark paths, especially odd given how bright and sunny her surroundings were. Aerith shook her head, promising herself to focus on the now, to think of bright, sunny things once more. Or at least, think on those for the time being.

"Yep, charm," agreed Aerith. she reached up to brush aside another lock of hair before rearranging. the materia now shone in her hand as she held it up for Tifa to examine. "Though I thought the same as you, until I saw it. It certainly seems to match all the descriptions I've heard about. Pink, shining, slightly small," the flower girl tossed it lightly in her hand, testing its weight and feeling the surface, "I don't know if it works though ,and I've no idea how to use it. Maybe I should go test it or something. Maybe even on a few of these people," her eyes flicked toward the beach, and she smiled mischievously. Like she'd actually use an unknown materia on strangers. That struck her as being just a little too mischievous, even for her.