dreamcrystals | A Letter to Home

Entry tags:

A Letter to Home

Sender: Zack Fair
To: All
Subject: No Subject (Backdated to the first week)

[ Words that begin to appear in the journals are written slowly, as if with intent. The handwriting is... coherent at best at this slower pace, but every word is coming in gradually and seemingly with more frustration.

Guess who thinks this is just a plain ol' journal to use? ]

~~Dear Aeir~~
~~What's up!?~~
~~Hello! Hey th———~~

Hey Aerith.
Hope things are going ~~well??~~ good for you

[ UGH ]

Sorry it's taken so long for me to write back... I know youve been waiting a long time
I can't call right now but soon, okay?
~~how are the flowers?~~ you swimming in gil yet?
Theirs ~~theres~~ lots of weird stuff going on that I'll explain when I get back.
So... yeah. ~~See you soon~~
~~Regard~~ [ No that was SO STUPID ]
bye

[ The words at the bottom of the page are suddenly cut out, as if completely disregarded or tossed away.

But seconds later another one appears: ]

Hello!

[ Nope that one is gone, too. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Susato really doesn't know what to think when he doesn't reply. Perhaps she got it wrong? ...It is a fairly common name, after all, and it was almost a year ago now that she heard it. Yet her first meeting with Aerith would always be special, always remembered, so she's quite certain she's not wrong.

She is about to apologise for bothering him anyway, pen already to the page to tell him to forget about it when more words finally appear.

Ah. ]

Yes, of course. Where are you at the moment?

[ He hasn't say back down in his chair, only leaning over the desk and writing quickly ]

me n a friend found a place in the residential area
but isnt there some kind of fountain around here? wanna meet up there?

[ Just. Waiting for a reply before he bolts out the door. ]

[ She wonders if Zack wouldn't be closer to the Harvest at present, but the fountain does serve as an excellent landmark. Susato decides not to question it, or confuse him with directions.

She simply starts making arrangements to leave, making sure that everything in the kitchen is well-cared for. ]

The fountain will do just fine. I will be in a pink kimono.

[ Does Zack know what a kimono is? Well, he's about to find out. ]

[ He hasn't gotten the lay of the land down quite yet, but it was rememberable, if anything.

He could make it there quick, too. ]

gotcha. see you soon

[ even if he doesn't know what it is entirely, the pink will be a good indication to him, at least.

He'll notify Cloud that he is stepping out for a bit with no real explanation as to why before darting out towards the direction he remembered the fountain to be.

Yet even as his legs pounded against the ground he walked on there was a slew of questions that filled his mind, jumbled with the thoughts of the past. What would they even talk about? How was she here before? She had talked about him? What did she say?

Every thought allowed his pace to grow faster and before his mind could catch up to the rest of his body, Zack was already wordlessly standing before the fountain. Breathless and overcome with grief.

It was likely that Susato would take a lot longer to arrive due to his sudden urgency, but he'll wait. Standing, pacing, and looking around for a noticeable hint of pink. ]

[ To be honest, Susato doesn't know what to expect. Perhaps she should have been more proactive about getting a physical description of him, but as it is, she has her journal out as she approaches the fountain. It isn't terribly crowded, at least, and when she spots his head of spiky black hair, pacing, almost impatiently, she knows that must be him.

Holy moly, that was fast.

Or maybe she was just slow...? (She wishes she had some sort of peace offering to make up for it. Should she have brought something for him? ...No, surely that would be too much.) ]

My apologies, I hope I didn't keep you waiting.

[ The commotion around the fountain doesn't seem to pull Zack away from his thoughts, but as he was doing his second set of squats (against the better judgement of those who were around watching him in confusion-) the voice that addresses him does make him pause.

Instantly his head will turn in the direction of the sound and mako eyes will meet pink. Yeah, that's gotta be her.

He'll stumble to his feet, a little less gracefully than normal, and approaches her. ]

Oh, no, you're fine. Just got here myself. [ No he didn't. But he didn't want her to feel bad. His voice is dripped in an unusual pinch of nervousness. ]

You're, uh... Susato, was it? The name from the journal? [ He seems apologetic, only just realizing how the stupid thing even worked. ]

Edited 2023-03-11 16:12 (UTC)

[ SQUATS...

Susato tilts her head, and can't help but admire the fact that he was so driven to stay active. At the same time she can tell he has a lot of nervous energy, and she doesn't wish to exacerbate that. With him found, she tucks away her notebook back in her kimono sleeve. Her manners compel her to give him a curtsey, noting how he towers over her in height. ]

Yes, Susato Mikotoba. It is a pleasure to meet you in person, Zack.

Are you... [ She straightens her posture. ] Are you quite alright?

Nice to meet you, too.

[ The curtsey only further throws him off his game as the nervous butterflies in his stomach still linger. But he'll nod, politely accepting her greeting before reaching behind his head to cup the back of his neck, giving is a rough rub. ]

I am, it's just— [ A pause as he swallows hard. ] —got caught off guard a little. You mentioned you were Aeirth's friend... are you from Midgar?

[ Midgar... Susato frowns, watching him, and sadly shakes her head. After a while, however, he will see her lips twitch in an attempt to smile nostalgically. ]

No. We met here, during last year's Flower Festival. [ Appropriate, isn't it? ] After we became friends, I managed to convince her to come work with me at the Harvest. We needed a waitress, and—

Well, I suppose she really didn't need a lot of convincing.

[ Last year... the words stung a little in his chest. He couldn't say he was in the great situation a year ago, but just thinking that she was here, so close, and he still wasn't able to reach her— ]

A waitress, huh? Yeah, I could see her doing something like that. [ She was a social butterfly, and easy to talk to. Zack was certain she would do a great job.

He swallows. He's beating around the bush. So eventually, awkwardly, Zack will kick the ground beneath him before averting his gaze. ]

... She spoke about me?

Mm. [ ...Susato hums thoughtfully. He would be happy to know that she did do a great job, but for now, she just smiles. He wants to hear that she spoke of him, and luckily she doesn't have to lie. ] Well, I had to ask. She didn't say much, honestly. I got the feeling that she didn't want me to be sad...

But I saw your name on one of her dream petals.

[ ...Didn't want her to be sad. To be honest, he couldn't quite blame her, either. She liked to jump around in her conversations, and was never one to dwell on things for too long.

Always there to try to make you smile... ]

Sorry if it was a sore subject, then. It's... been awhile since we last spoke.

[ It feels like it's been a while for her, too. And if it feels that way for her, she can only imagine how it feels for him. Maybe she should be the one apologizing, but instead, there's just a brief silence between them.

... ]

"I wish for more time... with Zack."

[ The petals were small. She still remembers, though. ]

That's what it said. So as I understand it, she was still waiting for you. She told me you were a first-class soldier.

[ ...

The pain in his chest was incomprehensible. It tightened further as he would inhale, leaving shaky and rattled fits of air that would attempt to escape when he exhaled.

Guilt. Sadness. Remorse. All these emotions swelling deep inside of his core when he thinks back to that last letter. "The last one" she had claimed. She had sent so many throughout the years. Wishing... hoping he would come back. And even still while in a dream world, Aerith had continued to wait for him.

He wished so badly to go back and see her. ]

Yeah... I was. [ He answers simply, bringing a hand to his chest and clenching it over where his heart lied. He could feel the beating in his ears, and felt as though his heart would simply leap out of his chest. ]

I promised her I would see her soon... that I wouldn't take too long. [ A pause as magically somehow, someway, the fountain had stopped spraying water. ] But I wasn't able to keep my promise.

Edited 2023-03-22 20:11 (UTC)

[ When he clutches his chest, Susato feels a pang in her own out of sympathy. She doesn't know him well enough to determine whether she should offer comfort in some way or give him space, so sadly, she does neither. At least, not immediately. She keeps a watchful eye, and a hand reaches up, like she wants to touch his shoulder. ]

Something prevented you from returning, I take it.

[ How did she put it now...? ]

She told me... "life" happened?

[ "Life". As if what happened to him could be considered part of life.

Perhaps though, it was... for a 1st Class SOLIDER. Angeal, Genesis, and even Sephiroth had all been overcome by the weight of what Shinra had made them into. "Monsters" they liked to say.

That was what they considered him to be, and so that's how he was treated. No longer human, but something generated and mutated by foreign cells. ]

I— [ He began, attempting to push the lump in his throat back down. ] —I got hurt pretty bad. Really messed up. After awhile I was finally was able to try to head back... but by then it had already been four years since we last spoke.

[ If only he had been stronger...

If only he had been able to be the one to defeat Sephiroth... ]

[ Four years. Kazuma was alone for three in the Realm of Stories. Four years is a long time. Still, so long as he returned, she was sure their relationship could have been mended. Not knowing whether he was safe could not have been easy, however. ]

I don't... I can't speak for her, but I'd like to think she would understand.

[ It might take time, but Aerith seemed like the forgiving sort. ]

There is a special flower just for the occasion, after all, that she shared with me. A flower to symbolize the reunion between two lovers...

I'm sure she would have given you one.

[ He laments in her reply. How ironic it was for there to be flowers involved, especially when it had to do with her and his feelings towards her.

But he couldn't grieve about it, he shouldn't. There was only one thing to do, and that was to continue forward so that one day, hopefully soon... he could see her again to properly apologize. ]

Maybe you're right... [ He breathes before suddenly lurching his body forward as if he was attempting to touch his toes. He remains in that position for a moment before heaving out a loud breath, almost yelling it out and forcing the feelings he was experiencing to exhale along with it.

Suddenly he is straightening his body back up again with a stretch, pumping a balled fist together. ]

Well, just means I gotta get one from her in person, right? Who knows, maybe she's dreaming about me and will come back!

[ Susato tilts her head at the gesture, but he was already doing squats when she found him, so she can't be too terribly surprised. She does seem a little startled when he is suddenly pops back up, stretching casually as if it had been nothing; but she decides she likes that energy.

She grins. ]

I hope you get to see her again.

[ One way or another.

...... ]

Um... Are you hungry? I could show you where she worked.

Thanks a lot, Susato.

[ As strange as his mannerisms were, it did help to relieve the ball of stress that had been so tightly clenched to his chest.

He hated this feeling of helplessness, and was going to do everything he could to fight back against it. ]

Starving, actually! [ He pauses for a moment, considering, before nodding his head. ] Yeah. I'd like to see it.

[ Zack definitely strikes Susato as someone who is always hungry. She grins, giving him a polite nod in the direction where she would've originally came from. ]

Alright, then please follow me!

[ Hopefully her courteousness will make up for the rough start he had with the journal, though the less said about that, the better, she thinks. ]

We opened early last year, but Aerith only joined us in the summer.

[ He certainly carries himself like a protagonist, so it just kind of comes with the territory.

But with a nod we'll begin to follow alongside Susato, keeping his pace to match hers.

Zack can't blame her for the rocky introduction, she was just asking a question, after all. And the more they walked, the more he was able to focus on his breathing and calm himself down enough to push down all those previous negative feelings aside.

... It also wasn't the best first impression to be all sad in front of a girl he just met! ]

I see... sounds like you're running a pretty nifty place. Never thought about opening a business in another world.

Me either, if I'm honest...

[ The truth is, it hadn't been her idea; though she did freely encourage it and offered her help, so to this day, she likes to think she had a hand in the decision. She will lead the way, speaking freely: ]

Would you believe I was a judicial assistant? [ Do they have lawyers back on Midgar? ]

[ Of course there was something like that, though Zack never got anywhere near that line or work, much less questioned it. ]

Judicial assistant? That's some kind of court room gig, right?

[ She gives him a nod, looking at him with interest. She's moved away from it, though speaking about it again feels like it gives her life, like a flame being rekindled. ]

Yes. Though back home, I technically wasn't allowed in one.

It wasn't until I traveled overseas that I was able to listen to trials as they happened, take notes, and give advice.

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