[02] [open] nemesis identified

[usarinpa]

Who: Mizuki and YOU [open]
Where: The wilderness, a ways from Aldrip in an out-of-the-way little cave (Not Lorentia)
What: In which Mizuki finds out she's been alone all along.
Warnings: Spoilers for AI, IDK—will add if any become relevant.

[ There are thin tire tracks starting at the inn that head out and away from Aldrip today. Curious, isn't it? Were they there before? Have you even seen a motorbike here in Aldrip since you woke up here?

If you're keen to find out, you will follow a trail that is just long enough to make you wonder whether you should turn back. Keep with it, however, and you will find yourself at a small cave nestled in the mountains, the opening of which is surrounded by trees. ]


👁️ i. He was the Universe

[ Perhaps you'll see the bike first. It sticks out like a sore thumb. But walk a little further and inside the cave, there's Mizuki, asleep on the cave's dirt floor.

Her hair is messy with sleep. There is a hair piece that sticks out against her cyan locks, standing out almost as much as her bike does in the wilderness. In her hand is an empty, decorated box with a note attached that wouldn't look out of place in a trash can, as it is. Meager remnants of the few good things that have happened to her here, now that she can't go back.

A subtle, unpleasant odor lingers in the air, reminiscent of a wet dog or wild animal that's no longer there. Somewhere beside her sits her pipe, and at her waist, there is her holstered Evolver. ]

👁️ ii. Ought to Know

[ Alternatively, the trail is still going. Eventually, footprints start to appear in the dirt next to the tire track, suggesting that Mizuki has started walking. Catch up to her, you'll find that her back is to you and she is dragging her bike alongside her.

Why? ...Well, technology continues to be fickle, apparently.

Watch her for long enough and you'll see her stop and try to start it again. Instead, there's that all too familiar, insufferable buzz that makes her cover her ears. Her mouth opens, like she's groaning, but the noise that escapes, if there had been any, is easily swallowed up by the rustling of leaves and the buzzing of insects.

Once that passes, she can be seen pulling out a piece of parchment from her pocket—a map. ]

▶ ooc/wildcard

[ Due to trauma, Mizuki will be aphonic/unable to speak temporarily! Sorry about that. She will still be writing things in the dirt or on the back of her map, probably, and if I feel it's appropriate, I may give her back her voice midthread.

Enjoy the introduction of her shiny new bike, and please feel free to reach out via PM, on the Discord, or yammdere for plotting/ideas! Thank you! ]

Comments

[usarinpa]

[ Heh. Well that tells Mizuki that she's convincing enough at least. Maybe Aerith is just humoring her, though. She seems like the type, especially since she so brilliantly picked up on the fact that Mizuki is upset. ]

Caring is exhausting. You care, and then...

And then people just leave, and you find out they were never there for you in the first place.

[inemeraldfaith]

[Sometimes it's better not to make others feel as thought they have nothing to hide behind. That's not really Aerith's style. She can push and press and pry, but... She doesn't want to go overboard.]

That... certainly can happen.

[No sense in lying about it, right? No matter how much Aerith may seem an infinite optimist, she understands where realism is important.]

But it doesn't always happen. Sometimes that's the risk one has to take. If you think everyone is like that, you'll miss out on something that might be truly special. Things won't always work out the way we want them to or expect them to. That's okay, though. It won't feel like it, but it really is.

[usarinpa]

[ How does she know?

She can't bring herself to say it aloud, but continues to stew in the bitterness and resentment. How can she say that with such confidence? Maybe there's a part of her that can't accept the act, but until she's given a reason to do so otherwise, she just mutters noncommittally, ]

Maybe.

[ Until then, she still doesn't know what she's supposed to do. She needs to find a new place to live that's preferably not the inn, though she may not have a choice otherwise for a while. ]

Did you have something special with anyone? [ This Cloud person, maybe? ]

If too old, please feel free to drop. Sorry for the wait!

[inemeraldfaith]

[Aerith has to assume that the only reason she can say things the way she does is because of what she’s personally gone through. What she’s lost. What she’s experienced. The fact that she’s here right now is a testament to something. Maybe to the idea that Aerith is unwilling to just surrender, regardless of whatever might be put up against her. Or maybe she understands what it means to be the only one of her kind and the weight of reality and expectation that comes with it.

Even if it’s just self-perceived expectation.

Her eyebrows raise at Mizuki’s question and she thinks on it for several moments before she can manage to provide what she can only hope is a marginally adequate response.]

Hm… I’d like to think I have something special with my friends. The truth is, there are people from home, like Cloud, who I haven’t known for very long. [Sort of. Technically, she’s known him for longer than he realises she has. At least, she thinks so.] Our other friends back home are kind of the same. I met them through him. There have been others, too.

[Zack, for instance, leaving her feelings a bit muddled in this place, in this time.]

Everyone I know is special in their own way. I want to think of them as special. I think they all deserve it. You fall into that, too. I think what you and I have is special. I don’t just sit with everyone like this and talk.

never! though we can probably steer both these older threads to a close soon ❤️

[usarinpa]

[ So she doesn't know him that well. Yet they live together.

Is it just because they were from the same place? She can kind of understand that. It was easy for her to flock to a familiar face, even if it ended poorly for her. Her fist tighten slightly at the thought of her being "special," but she otherwise doesn't react much. ]

You don't? [ Could have fooled Mizuki. There is perhaps a touch of disbelief in her tone, but mostly it is just flat. She is tired. ]

Sounds like a plan.

[inemeraldfaith]

Hmmmmmmmnope!

[Pulling her knees a little closer to her, she wears a gentler smile.]

Not for lack of trying. The people in Midgar aren't all very nice. It's a complicated situation. My mom also worries about me, so I try not to do too many things that'll give her a reason to do that. I guess you could say that while there's people back home I help, like with errands and things like that, there aren't a lot of people that I'm close to.

[Aerith offers up a shrug.]

That's all it is. Not all situations are equal. Not all relationships are equal, either.

1/2

[usarinpa]

[ Mom.

For just a second, she can feel a brief flash of ache where she'd gotten the worst of Shoko's punishments. When Mizuki was too clingy, or when Shoko was too drunk. Her ears rang from the lectures, the rants. Hours, and for what...?

A balloon. ]

My mom never...

[usarinpa]

[ Yet she can't. She can't admit it. That he was right, that Shoko never loved her. ]

Never mind. [ Anyway. ]

[inemeraldfaith]

[Aerith quiets when Mizuki speaks. Her mom…

What.

It’s hard not to immediately jump to the worst conclusion. There are probably shades of grey and many things that she doesn’t understand. It isn’t right to assume, however. Instead, she looks sympathetic.]

Hm… I don’t want to push you. I never do. With some people, that’s okay. But with you, I don’t want to do that. One day, I hope you feel comfortable enough with me to say anything that’s on your mind. Doesn’t have to be today or tomorrow, or even weeks or months from now. But one day, I hope you feel safe to do so.

[Her smile is small and subdued, but seemingly sincere.]

I’m here for you. However you might need me to be.

🎀

[usarinpa]

[ Safe.

It's hard to say whether she'll ever feel truly safe ever again. At least for right now, however, in this very moment, a part of her can feel safe with Aerith. She appears to have moved past the desire to push Aerith away, and no matter how small that might feel and how little Mizuki realizes it, it's progress.

It may take a little longer to get the full story, but eventually she will warn her about the imposter Kaname Date. With Cloud living with Aerith, Mizuki isn't likely to live with them, but at least she has the option open to her, making her feel a little less trapped.

All this, but she is remains quiet, dipping her chin low as she brings her knees into fetal position. ]

...Thank you.