I can think of a couple of things that I may or may not have done, Cloud.
[ Yes, he's probably enjoying this. But also yes, he can think of at least one other thing he's getting messaged about. Like a certain picture got circulated. ]
[Being that casual about something weighty is Cloud's norm, so it doesn't strike him as all that odd - not over text, at least. Seeing Vincent actually looking at the picture and hearing him make comparisons might be a different story.]
[ Of course it won't be immediately or anything. He's probably doing work right at this moment. But later there's going to be a point where he returns to his room.
You know, to recharge from all the interactions he has to have with other people. You'd think a vessel the size of the Barge would not feel crowded. But you would also be wrong. At least from Vincent's point of view. ]
[When Cloud heads over to Vincent's cabin and knocks on the door, he's carrying a plate with a slice of cake on it.]
It's me.
[A quiet announcement, since he's really not sure how often Vincent answers the door. Or if he's going to now, if he's even there at all. Such are the risks when one's befriended an elusive cryptid.]
[ Generally speaking? There's few of the people he'd call friends that he wouldn't answer the door for. How long he'd indulge the visit is probably a better question to ask.
But he's in and awake. After a moment the door opens. ]
...So it is. Want to come in?
[ He will move out of the way if it's suggested Cloud is here for a prolonged visit. Which is more than he'd allow for non-friends.
Unless they had booze. The former Turk's frame doesn't fill the entire door and if Cloud is really curious he can see Vincent was up to a little gun maintenance. Cerberus is still at his side but another weapon is in pieces on a cloth upon the main room's coffee table.
Look. Would anyone be really surprised if it turned out he had more than one gun? ]
[Cloud doesn't bother responding aloud, just heads on in when Vincent moves aside. He does spot the gun maintenance, and isn't surprised in the least to find that he has more than one.
Once Vincent's shut the door, Cloud holds the plate out to him.]
Aerith asked the Admiral for a cake for my birthday. The one my mom used to make. Didn't feel right eating the whole thing by myself.
[ Vincent's gaze shifts from Cloud's face to the plate in hand. Then back to the blond's expression. ]
...Huh. Now that is a neat trick.
[ The Admiral being able to conjure up a Nibelheim mural was one thing, but nabbing Cloud's mom's cake? That's damned impressive. But rather than take the offering in hand, Vincent sets himself in motion, cloak swirling as he moves to the kitchen. ]
Mind putting it on the table?
[ But this time it isn't the weird lack of qualities one might expect in a host. Gun maintenance means gun oil, powder residue and the like. Both of his hands were already bare and he needs to to more than wipe them clean with a towel as he did before answering the door. In any case that'll be pretty obvious when water is turned on and soap procured. ]
Hm. I suppose an anonymous gift was pointless.
[ Hands are dried, a fork is fetched. And that comment was probably a conversation to continue the one that happened the day before. ]
[ Sephiroth providing that would be... probably tonedeaf. Honestly, Vincent had debated whether or not it wuold be a bad idea as a present from himself before deciding to go with it.
Which of course suggests that at one point the anonymity might have been an effort to create a buffer. Even if said buffer lasted ten minutes. At the very least, plausible deniability. In short, Vincent is secretly relieved it went over well enough. ]
Right.
[ He's back, picking up the plate of cake. Looking down at it, then toward Cloud. ]
Hm.
[ ...Is it a little odd to be eating a slice of cake alone? With an audience? Maybe. ]
...'Suppose there's no time like the present. How about going to see it now?
[ You know, where at least they can be doing something else. And maybe there's a slice of cake left to eat companionably or something. Really Cloud it's weird to eat cake alone. ]
[Cloud doesn't look back, but once they get into the corridor he does walk beside Vincent and glance over briefly. Well, it makes some sense to him. Do all the birthday-related things at once, sure.
When Cloud unlocks his cabin door and lets Vincent in, the sight that greets them is a room that looks like a fusion between Cloud's childhood home and the interior of Edge's Seventh Heaven - homey with understated rural charm, combined with a bit of that post-apocalyptic industrial grunge feel. The traditional Nibel architecture should be familiar enough to Vincent. The furniture is functional first and aesthetically pleasing second, but there is a certain down-to-earth quality to much of it. The rest could have been lifted straight out of Seventh Heaven, including his rotary phone and desk, and even a 'bar' of sorts - there's nothing behind it, though. It's just the bar itself pushed flush against the wall with a few stools in front of it.
As for the mural, it stretches across the wall above the bar, taking up the entire length of it. Cloud gestures to the bar with his chin as a way of telling Vincent he's welcome to sit, but before he does so himself, he does indeed cut himself a slice of cake, too, with the...butter knife that's sitting out on the bar alongside it. Yeah, butter knife is the best he can do - he's lucky the bar came with that much, frankly. A few dishes and blunt silverware, that's about it.]
[ There's definitely familiarity. He's been to Edge in good and bad times. And... he remembers Nibelheim. Just like the former Turk's own room that so much would lend itself to what furnishings must have once looked like in the Shinra Mansion, the cabin is clearly a fusion of what one may consider 'home'.
Vincent follows Cloud in and looks around to take stock while Cloud retrieves another slice of cake. Good, the plan is coming together. There is no judging the butter knife; it slices cake just fine. But Cloud may hear a rattle as it turns out the 'one' fork Vincent brought was actually two stacked together. It's just quietly set down before he takes a seat at the bar and turns his focus on the mural. ]
Hmph. It really doesn't change much at all does it?
[ Vincent can probably point out a few new things. Even sleepy mountain towns have changes. Subtle repairs, new decorations outside. But even if he can, it's something to note that Nibelheim is the sort of place that time does seem to stand still. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
no subject
[ Yes, he's probably enjoying this. But also yes, he can think of at least one other thing he's getting messaged about. Like a certain picture got circulated. ]
no subject
What are the other things?
no subject
[ Like nbd. ]
Other things? Nothing particular.
Did the Admiral get the time frame right?
[ Of the mural. Vincent is sure the entity would have fulfilled the request as best possible but it kind of was an abstract one. ]
no subject
[It seems insufficient, but what else can he say?]
no subject
Well, he can probably come up with q few good excuses. ]
Don't mention it.
Maybe I'll come by sometime. See what changed.
[ Well. That is interesting. Vincent talked of many things about his past. But never something implied so casually as indulging in nostalgic memory. ]
no subject
[Being that casual about something weighty is Cloud's norm, so it doesn't strike him as all that odd - not over text, at least. Seeing Vincent actually looking at the picture and hearing him make comparisons might be a different story.]
no subject
[ Of course it won't be immediately or anything. He's probably doing work right at this moment. But later there's going to be a point where he returns to his room.
You know, to recharge from all the interactions he has to have with other people. You'd think a vessel the size of the Barge would not feel crowded. But you would also be wrong. At least from Vincent's point of view. ]
the next day... -> action
It's me.
[A quiet announcement, since he's really not sure how often Vincent answers the door. Or if he's going to now, if he's even there at all. Such are the risks when one's befriended an elusive cryptid.]
no subject
But he's in and awake. After a moment the door opens. ]
...So it is. Want to come in?
[ He will move out of the way if it's suggested Cloud is here for a prolonged visit. Which is more than he'd allow for non-friends.
Unless they had booze. The former Turk's frame doesn't fill the entire door and if Cloud is really curious he can see Vincent was up to a little gun maintenance. Cerberus is still at his side but another weapon is in pieces on a cloth upon the main room's coffee table.
Look. Would anyone be really surprised if it turned out he had more than one gun? ]
no subject
Once Vincent's shut the door, Cloud holds the plate out to him.]
Aerith asked the Admiral for a cake for my birthday. The one my mom used to make. Didn't feel right eating the whole thing by myself.
no subject
...Huh. Now that is a neat trick.
[ The Admiral being able to conjure up a Nibelheim mural was one thing, but nabbing Cloud's mom's cake? That's damned impressive. But rather than take the offering in hand, Vincent sets himself in motion, cloak swirling as he moves to the kitchen. ]
Mind putting it on the table?
[ But this time it isn't the weird lack of qualities one might expect in a host. Gun maintenance means gun oil, powder residue and the like. Both of his hands were already bare and he needs to to more than wipe them clean with a towel as he did before answering the door. In any case that'll be pretty obvious when water is turned on and soap procured. ]
Hm. I suppose an anonymous gift was pointless.
[ Hands are dried, a fork is fetched. And that comment was probably a conversation to continue the one that happened the day before. ]
no subject
[From Cloud's tone, he's not sure how much of a good thing that is.
He moves to put the plate on the table as Vincent asks and then leans against a wall, arms folded casually.]
Only so many people it could've been, and I asked Aerith. And Zack wouldn't have done it anonymously.
[And it sure as hell wasn't Sephiroth, so Cloud was left with only one possibility.]
no subject
Which of course suggests that at one point the anonymity might have been an effort to create a buffer. Even if said buffer lasted ten minutes. At the very least, plausible deniability. In short, Vincent is secretly relieved it went over well enough. ]
Right.
[ He's back, picking up the plate of cake. Looking down at it, then toward Cloud. ]
Hm.
[ ...Is it a little odd to be eating a slice of cake alone? With an audience? Maybe. ]
...'Suppose there's no time like the present. How about going to see it now?
[ You know, where at least they can be doing something else. And maybe there's a slice of cake left to eat companionably or something. Really Cloud it's weird to eat cake alone. ]
no subject
Sure, might as well.
[He heads for the door without further fanfare.]
no subject
In fact if Cloud looks back, he's going to see Vincent carrying it with him as he follows the blond to the next level cabin.
This is perfectly normal, truly. But it has a deeper meaning than whether to eat it in companionship or enjoying it at its freshest.
More on that in a bit. ]
no subject
When Cloud unlocks his cabin door and lets Vincent in, the sight that greets them is a room that looks like a fusion between Cloud's childhood home and the interior of Edge's Seventh Heaven - homey with understated rural charm, combined with a bit of that post-apocalyptic industrial grunge feel. The traditional Nibel architecture should be familiar enough to Vincent. The furniture is functional first and aesthetically pleasing second, but there is a certain down-to-earth quality to much of it. The rest could have been lifted straight out of Seventh Heaven, including his rotary phone and desk, and even a 'bar' of sorts - there's nothing behind it, though. It's just the bar itself pushed flush against the wall with a few stools in front of it.
As for the mural, it stretches across the wall above the bar, taking up the entire length of it. Cloud gestures to the bar with his chin as a way of telling Vincent he's welcome to sit, but before he does so himself, he does indeed cut himself a slice of cake, too, with the...butter knife that's sitting out on the bar alongside it. Yeah, butter knife is the best he can do - he's lucky the bar came with that much, frankly. A few dishes and blunt silverware, that's about it.]
no subject
Vincent follows Cloud in and looks around to take stock while Cloud retrieves another slice of cake. Good, the plan is coming together. There is no judging the butter knife; it slices cake just fine. But Cloud may hear a rattle as it turns out the 'one' fork Vincent brought was actually two stacked together. It's just quietly set down before he takes a seat at the bar and turns his focus on the mural. ]
Hmph. It really doesn't change much at all does it?
[ Vincent can probably point out a few new things. Even sleepy mountain towns have changes. Subtle repairs, new decorations outside. But even if he can, it's something to note that Nibelheim is the sort of place that time does seem to stand still. ]