IC Inbox.

[weartearrust]

"This is Angeal. You know what to do."

Comments

[drunk text time]

[nimbuster]

Tell me about sephiroth

[Yeah, that's...that's it. No leadup, no further explanation. Just that, out of nowhere, around 10pm.]

[weartearrust]

[It's 10pm why is someone texting him about sephiroth. He stares at the text for a bit.]

Sephiroth Fact #3669: he doesn't use the whole bottle every time, that's only after particularly grimy experiences.

Logistics is told otherwise.

[nimbuster]

No shit not what I meant. I mean I want to know what he was like before

[weartearrust]

It's awfully late at night for that kind of thing, isn't it?

And over texting of all things. It should at least rate an email.

[text] -> [audio]

[nimbuster]

Youre not asleep. Texting is easier but fine.

[Cloud sure as hell is not going to write a drunk email, so he just calls Angeal instead. Ring ring...]

[weartearrust]

I'm not NOW, ye

[The communicator is stated at as it begins to ring. Very, very slowly he pushes a button.]

Yes?

[nimbuster]

Angeal. Need to know what Sephiroth used to be like.

[There's a certain careful slowness to Cloud's speech that suggests he is perhaps not firing on all cylinders.]

[weartearrust]

[Either that kid is half asleep or he's ON SOMETHING.

Angeal continues to eye his communicator extremely dubiously.]


Are you sure you're awake enough for this kind of conversation?

[nimbuster]

Course. M'not tired. Come on, I gotta know.

[weartearrust]

You sound tired. I don't want to repeat myself. Are you sure you haven't ... I don't know, taken any sleeping medication or anything like that?

[nimbuster]

What, never talked to a drunk guy before? Pff, callin' bullshit, I bet SOLDIER had the craziest parties.

[A pause.]

Angeal. Have you seen Sephiroth drunk.

[weartearrust]

[There's a long pause on his end. SOLDIER doesn't by and large have the ability to get drunk once they were fully enhanced. Cloud, stripped of his enhancements and apparently taking advantage of that fact, is now an exception.]

Officially, no, that kind of thing would end with a trail of destruction a mile wide and is frowned upon.

[Officially. Is Cloud too unsober to read between the lines?]

Sephiroth isn't normally capable of getting drunk. None of us are. Why don't you get some sleep, and I'll try to remember everything I can that you might find interesting about Sephiroth in the meantime.

[nimbuster]

Tell me about the unofficial stuff then.

[Not quite!]

...oh, right. Ugh, stupid.

[Directed at himself, of course.]

Told you. Not tired. Can't ask Sephiroth cuz he'd just say he doesn't have emotions or something. Whatever.

[weartearrust]

When was the last time you've been drunk, besides today?

[nimbuster]

Uhhh, infantry barracks. That was...

[A pause that's much too long, as he tries to do mental math.]

Buncha years ago. I was six--no, fifteen. Way before my life went to shit.

[weartearrust]

[He sighs.]

Alright then. Tomorrow morning, bright and early, come down to the kitchens. I'll make you something that'll help with the side effects you'll be feeling and we can talk then.

['Bright and early' he knows will be 'whenever Cloud can scrape himself off the floor'.]

Do you have a friend to stay with tonight? Zack maybe?

[nimbuster]

No!

[An immediate kneejerk reaction when Angeal mentions Zack.]

Don't tell Zack I did this. ...uh, please.

[weartearrust]

You're right, I don't think I should. He'll be very jealous, and we can't have that.

[So who else, then? Someone needed to keep tabs on Cloud, obviously. Sephiroth might, he seemed fond of him in his own bizarre way. What about the vampire?]

Someone else, then?

[nimbuster]

No, I just...don't want Zack to be disappointed. In me. I'm not...the living legacy he deserved.

[Cloud rolls his eyes, not that Angeal can see it.]

I'm fine.

[weartearrust]

Yes, you're fine, but spending your time alone while drunk is a waste of a good buzz. You should find a friend and see for yourself. Besides, I've known Zack for a long time. The only thing that would disappoint him is he wasn't invited along.

[nimbuster]

Mm. ...well, you'd know better than me.

[But Cloud has no intention of letting Zack see him like this. Sorry, Angeal, he's a sad, self-loathing sort of drunk.]

What about you? You volunteering?

[weartearrust]

Hm, if you'd like. I didn't know you thought of me as a friend, I'm honored.

[...Except what the hell does he have on hand to keep a drunk occupied? He surveys his small room with a frown.]

Hope you like card games.

[nimbuster]

Why not? You're Zack's friend, right? N' me too, so...we should be friends too. Besides, we're uh....Buster sword...buddies. Buster buddies. Ha.

[Since when?]

I like card games. Pretty much any games. Haven't played any in...a while. But--

[He pauses and someone else says something further from the communicator. He puts it down and says something back, and a minute or so goes by where he's having some conversation. And then...more time goes by. Did he...did he forget he was in the middle of a call?

Yup. He sure did.]

[weartearrust]

[Buster swords aren't THAT common, are they? Maybe Cloud liked Zack's and decided he wanted one too.

As the silence stretches on, Angeal gives a soft, very weary sigh and picks up his communicator, typing in a different name as he heads for the door.]

Video

[chaos_drifter]

It looks like you and I are paired for the month. Do you need anything? [Avalon knows they should say something else, considering they have no idea who Angeal is, but their mind is blank. After a moment of staring into the camera, no obvious expression on their face, they cut the feed.]