Birds of a Feather?

Birds of a Feather...?

She had to tell him how she felt. She didn’t think she’d be able to stand it any longer, if something happened in battle, and she hadn’t told him how much she loved him.

Now was a good time, too. The group was taking a break, trying to relax after the many weeks of training and hunting down the man in the black cape. They’d gone from town to town, restocking and upgrading various equipment and items, trying to learn all the spells they could, and overall just getting ready for the inevitable battle at the end of their trials. She didn’t care where they went, honestly, as long as it was with him.

She didn’t know how long she’d been in love with him, she just knew that she loved every part of him, from his glorious golden spikes to the way he held himself, confident and collected. She loved the way he spoke, the way he was so kind to her, the way he seemed to love her back. He’d never said a harsh word to her, although she knew she’d made some mistakes. Not like Cid or Barret, who would always complain at every little thing. No, he simply let her be her, and she loved him for it.

She decided she’d try to get him alone, to try to show him how she felt, to see if she’d been deluding herself to think he felt the same way about her. He’d been puttering about all day, not doing anything in particular, so she knew she’d be able to find him somewhere nearby. The other women were doing something inside, so there was no chance of him getting distracted by any of them.

Her heart leapt in her chest as she spotted him coming out of the barn with Barret and Yuffie, laughing as they came closer to where she was waiting. He looked gorgeous, with the sun reflecting in his hair like that, catching the gold and making it shine. She almost fainted dead away when he waved them off, and came up to her with a smile, holding out a hand.

“Hey, girl, what’s up? You wanna take a walk or something?” She could barely contain her excitement; luck was with her all the way! When he went for a walk, no one would bother following, because they knew that was his time to be alone. To be invited to go along... It was too much to have even hoped for!!

She allowed him to lead her off towards the woods, knowing that the area surrounding them was relatively safe and monster-less, thanks to their recent attempts to become stronger. They stopped after a time, coming to a stream where he bent down to drink. He sat down after he was done, stretching against a tree. She stood nearby, slightly nervous. Now that they were alone, how would she tell him? Her fantasies had never gotten past going off together to be alone. Well... Might as well start-

“So, yeah, I don’t know about this whole, “save the planet” thing, you know? I mean, that’s a big responsibility, and I’m nothing more than an ex-SOLDIER. I know I’ve got help and everything, but still, it’s a daunting task, you know?”

**I know what you mean, but I know you can do it- I believe in you.** How much she wanted to say that! But she felt like he wasn’t done yet, so she didn’t respond. She simply waited, until, sure enough, he began to speak again.

“I mean, it’s not like I asked to be the hero or anything. It just kinda happened. And who would’ve thought, the guy I used to look up to is the one I’m trying to hunt down, and the company I used to work for is out to get me. Things are crazy, you know?” he sighed dramatically, and she wanted nothing more than to run over and cover him with kisses. She resisted the temptation as he continued yet again.

“But it’s been worth it, I think. I mean, I’ve been to lots of places, met new people, gotten stronger.... I’ve gotten allies that will help me on my way, and I’ve grown to like having them around, I guess. I dunno- its different from before, when I was just a mercenary, but it’s cool, you know? ”

Resisting the urge to run over and start nuzzling his cheek and nibbling his ear, she walked over to stand next to him. He didn’t seem to notice, however, as his eyes became distant.

“I’m really glad I’m doing this. If I hadn’t accepted that job, I never would have met-“

**-He’s going to say it! He’s going to say he loves me!!-**

“Aerith.”

**....What?? **

“She’s really become special to me, you know? Nah, I guess you don’t. It’s just... she’s like the sun after it’s been rainy all day, and her smile.... I sound like an idiot. But I think I love her.”

**NOOOO!!! It’s not supposed to go like this!!**

“I just can’t imagine life without her-“

**This can’t be happening... **

“She just lights up my day-“

**How could you do this to me?? **

“And whenever I’m with her-“

**I’m going to kill her for this!! Damn you, Aerith!! **

“I just feel..... happy. Comfortable. Able to be myself, and not worry about keeping up appearances. It’s just her and me, when I see her, you know?”

**I know, alright. When I see her, it will be just her and me, and it won’t be pretty.... **

Cloud, oblivious to the death threats being thought up for his now-claimed girlfriend, smiled up at his companion. She looked down at him, and he couldn’t help but laugh.

“This probably sounds pretty silly to you, huh? What would you know about love-?”

It was at this point, she lost her control, and shouted out,‘I LOVE YOU, CLOUD STRIFE!’ followed by an attack to show her affections.

To everyone else in the vicinity, there was a loud “WAAAAAAAAAAAAARK” of a chocobo, and a human shout afterwards.

Running to investigate the cries, the team anxiously ran to find their leader, who had gone off on one of his brooding walks with his chocobo, Quark. Upon arriving at the scene, Yuffie dropped her shuriken, holding her sides as she fell over laughing. Aerith hid a smile behind her hand, while Tifa simply rolled her eyes, muttering, “not another one...” Vincent and Red watched silently from the side, although Red’s upper lip was threatening to curl upwards, and you never could really tell what was behind Vincent’s cloak’s collar.

Cid and Barret, on the other hand, vocally stated their suprise.

“What the $^#* you doing with that $%(&^*% bird, you #%*^&(^??” and

“Thas’ what chu get fo’ havin’ a hairdo like a chicken, foo’!! You get Chocobos comin’ after chu’!!”

Cloud, trapped as he was beneath the loving bird, struggled for his large sword, intent on having fried chicken for dinner. He cursed rather loudly as she continued to nibble on his ear, crooning to him while refusing to let him up. Losing his temper, he shouted to the others, appealing to whatever sense of pity they had (which wasn’t much, considering they hadn’t tried to stop Quark’s affections yet.)

“Shut up and get her off me!! Barret!! Cid! C’mon!! Stupid Bird!!” This made Quark fall back immediately, heartbroken and in shock. Aerith giggled, going over to the fallen hero.

“Cloud, that isn’t nice. She lasted a lot longer than the others... But maybe next time you should get a boy Chocobo, to avoid this happening again.” Quark, upon seeing the rival for her love’s affections so near at hand, hissed loudly, but she was quickly was driven back by a growling Red. Giving one final cry of devotion to her unrequited love, she ran off into the night to find a way to heal her broken heart.

Cloud got up, somewhat painfully, stalking off and muttering about stupid birds and how motorcycles were so much more efficient. The males followed soon after, leaving the three girls at the site of the attack. Tifa sighed, plucking a golden feather out of her hair.

“We’ve got to do something about these birds...” Aerith simply sighed, shaking her head.

“Maybe we should have taken the Highwind after all. I don’t think I could stand seeing another, umm, breakup like that. Poor things. I wonder if they think Cloud is leading them on...?” Yuffie laughed, heading back towards the inn.

“Who knows what goes on in the mind of those things? Personally, however, I find it amusing to see Cloud get molested by overgrown turkeys. Who knows, maybe he was a Chocobo in a past life, and they really are ‘birds of a feather’? Hmmm, I think we’d better get back though, Cloud had that ‘let’s get out of here as soon as possible’ look.” The others agreed, leaving the spot to go and re-pack their supplies before Cloud gave the inevitable order to move out. They had places to go, things to do, people to see, and -Cloud, at least- had several more hearts to break before their journey would see its end.






-The End




*AN- Rather pointless and a bit out of character.... But can’t you see Cloud spilling his deepest, darkest secrets to a Chocobo? Lol, I can. Poor Quark, Cloud leading her on like that.... I was surprised no one had ever written anything like this before, as it makes for an amusing scene, I think. Anyway, responses are always appreciated, I’d love to hear what you think! ~SLS~ *