Appointments

[aerialassault]

Cliff here. Looks like we've missed eachother, so drop a note and we'll talk soon.

[please note date/time/type of interaction.]

Comments

April 7th, evening | voice

[ahappylie]

Cliff-san? If you have a moment, I have a favor to ask of you.

April 7th, evening | voice

[aerialassault]

'Sup, Souji? Ask away.

April 7th, evening | voice

[ahappylie]

Do you think you could come over and help take care of a few things while I'm away? I'm not sure when, but it should be soon.

May 22nd, Early Morning | Action

[ahappylie]

[Things had been...rough lately. And when things got rough, he tended to shut himself away and re-emerge in strange ways. After two weeks of inclement weather, Souji found himself not only bored but restless and looking for someone who would put up with his antics.

Which is why he found himself sitting and staring at Cliff's bedroom door early in the morning. He wasn't sure if his friend was in or not, but that hardly mattered. Cliff would see what Souji left him whenever he woke up or returned.

Laying himself prone on the floor, the swordsman began shoving small origami animals covered in glitter under the small gap between Cliff's door and the floor. The first few were difficult to get going, but once Souji knew how much pressure he needed to apply to send them flying further into the room, he had a nice rhythm going and was quickly dispensing multicolored glittery paper giraffes, frogs, peacocks, pigs, cats, dogs, and even a lion and a dinosaur or two for Cliff to find.]

May 22nd, Early Morning | Action

[aerialassault]

[An early riser no matter what world he found himself on, Cliff had already been up and about for a little while when Souji began his prank. He wasn't in his apartment, having trotted off to the plaza to get a hot cup of coffee that was already made just so he didn't need to worry about Fayt being traumatized irritable by his methods of using the coffee maker. Though they were effective, Cliff tended to leave more of a mess than he intended.

It was why he stopped behind Souji when he arrived, not even questioning the fact that his friend had entered their apartment. Living with a band of rowdy Klausians, and spending enough time in medieval inns, had left him immune.

He stood for a moment in silence, just looming there.

React?]

[ahappylie]

[That. Is not a good feeling.

Souji felt the hairs on the back of his neck standing up and he turned his head slightly, half of a glittery fluorescent pink turtle shoved under the door. For a moment, he froze, looking up at Cliff who loomed over him like a wall of "What are you doing at my door?"

Then, very slowly, he continued to push the turtle into Cliff's room.]

Gooooooood morning~

evening of the 6th

[etherealblast]

[After they'd helped Nel settle in, Fayt and Cliff had made their way back to their own apartment to rest, promising to see her tomorrow and help show her around a bit more if she wanted it. But when they do get back in, Fayt knew before anything else he and Cliff needed to talk.

Stepping inside, he runs a hand through his hair, a little tired but still wide awake in spite of it all thanks to thoughts running through his head.] So what do you think?

evening of the 6th

[aerialassault]

Really? I don't know.

[His response was immediate. It was a strange situation all around. Beyond Luceti, there was the now obvious trouble with timeline. Cliff himself knew that he had a ways to go before his experiences matched Fayt's, but Nel knew even less than him.

And, at that point...]

...she deserves something, for sure. We own her that much.

[Since, up until the event that she described, they had only been feeding her a pack of misdirections and half-truths.]

August 19, afternoon

[ahappylie]

[After the war to take back the enclosure and after Souji had been changed back to a man with all his memories returned, he did the one thing he always hated about himself. He hid. From his friends, from his roommate, even from his duties as much as he could without completely neglecting them. He needed time to come up with a valid excuse, he told himself. He needed time to find an appropriate way to laugh it all off as another strange experiment and pretend it had never happened. But even after the excuses and the jokes came, he realized he didn't want to see the friends he had made in Luceti; especially the ones who had become family. So he hid further, moving around from place to place and only going home when necessary or when he felt guilty about leaving Kohaku behind. He decided he needed more time; time to shove old aches away into an already overfilled closet and time to simply remember what it was like not to be someone else.

Someone who had been happy.

Souji hated them.

And so, rather than return home to take his usual nap, he found an empty room in community building 2 on a floor far enough up that no one else occupied it and laid down. He was certain no one would find him here, and other than Saizou nipping at his kimono sleeves every so often, he was able to relax. Now, if only he could sleep.]

August 19, afternoon

[aerialassault]

[Finding someone who didn't want to be found was always a tough job, especially when stealth was a key element in the approach. At his height and with his physique, Cliff had settled with the fact that he was far too conspicuous for covert ops long ago. Leave it to the other men and women-- he had his own methods and talents.

He hadn't gained his notoriety for nothing.

The aftermath of the battle and the return to reality hadn't hit Cliff nearly as hard as it had other residents. It had only given him a taste of...something he didn't know he wanted, but he had no particular rage or ill will against it. He was still himself, after all. Little had changed about his actual person, just his reasons and motives.

It was the details that got to him, but he would address that when the village as a whole had better collected itself. Minds and emotions were too fractured and scattered now-- he could feel it in the air. It was bad mojo for any practical discussion.

Besides, there were more important things. Two people in particular needed his attention in the aftermath, just to see how they were faring. Vegeta, he knew, would make himself known soon enough. It was his pretty 'wife' that'd be the problem.

He spent a few days settling back into his routine. The loss of Florian and Bulla's injuries had put a damper on things, but there were always other things to do. During this time he kept his eyes peeled for a glimpse of that long, black ponytail or a particularly irritable pig.

After it was clear that Souji wouldn't be found by conventional means, Cliff started searching through the deserted homes and apartments. The springs were a no-go. Everyone seemed to be flocking there...and Souji was a nightowl.

The heavy clomp of his boots echoing through the open halls of community building 2 made his presence well known to anyone in the area. He couldn't hide, so he didn't even bother to try. Every few paces he would stop near a wall or a door and press his ear to it, as if listening for some movement within. If someone was heard he would knock and ask a few questions. If no one was around, he would open the door and take a peek himself, just to see what he could find.]

[action] 16th? 17th? of October. After Vegeta's post.

[etherealblast]

[ After a conversation with Vegeta Fayt knew he had to talk to Cliff. It wasn't that he was angry that Cliff had shared that kind of information... he was sure he was just trying to help, or something like that. But it did leave him disappointed Cliff hadn't told him. It wasn't exactly something he was keen on sharing about himself period after all, especially with how complicated it all was and how little he really did know.

And so whenever Cliff comes back from wherever he went off to, Fayt will be waiting. He had opted not to go out just to ensure he didn't miss Cliff's return, and has a book in hand to occupy his time, sitting casually on the couch as he glances up at the door.]

Hey.

[action] 16th? 17th? of October. After Vegeta's post.

[aerialassault]

[A hot shower and a good night's sleep were the only things Cliff had in mind when he went back to their shared apartment late that night. Vegeta played hard, but the Saiyan's level of hard was vastly different from his own. Where he strained to keep up, Vegeta made it all look like child's play.

It was a level that Cliff suspected he would never quite hit, but he still would try.

The sight of Fayt sitting on the couch within full sight of the door, idly reading a book, seemed suspicious even after such an exhausting afternoon. He had a hunch that something was up.

He shut the door with a satisfying click before he made his way over.]

Yo. 'Sup?

[Not!Action] september 18th

[etherealblast]

[And when Cliff wakes up the next morning, after their talk.... he'll find a pair of slightly obnoxious novelty socks hanging from his doorknob, and a small note taped to them.

"Forgot to give you these yesterday. Just in case.

Hope you enjoyed your mission. No hard feelings about yesterday, alright?

-Fayt"]

December 16th

[etherealblast]

Hey. Did you see Albel today?

December 16th

[aerialassault]

Huh? Yeah, I did.

[In the Dome, wearing little more than that sarong and midriff of his and complaining about the weather. Cliff shook his head.]

What's that guy even thinking? He's got that coat of his....it's kinda like he just wants to complain or something.

2am | January 10th

[etherealblast]

[Cliff might hear the apartment door open in the early, early hours of the morning. Fayt was only just returning, having woken up after an embarrassing several hour nap on the battledome floor, but at the very least with something accomplished after a year of training.

But all he wanted right now? was sleep. Vegeta had removed the safeties, leading to more than a few minor injuries but luckily nothing too bad, and after healing what he could with medicines stolen from the vending machine Fayt was more than ready for bed, his body feeling sore and leaden, overexertion with symbology and an inpromptu nap on the battledome floor after heavy combat taking it's toll.

He creeps down the hallway to his room, hopefully quiet enough not to wake Cliff, his intent to slip into his room and bed without notice.]

2am | January 10th

[aerialassault]

[It's hard not to notice the little sounds when sleep barely hangs floating in the abyss of darkness, lingering just out of reach. The soft clicking of a key turning the tumblers in a lock and a door snapping closed were enough to draw Cliff's attention-- worry had kept him on edge of wakefulness, as if they weren't in Luceti but somewhere in the plains of the Aire hills. After over a year of keeping an eye on the young man, he just couldn't shake his concern when Fayt didn't show up before midnight without any kind of notice.

A shuffling of feet on the floor just passed the door to his bedroom when Cliff, wearing the loose pants and plain shirt that he wore to bed in the winter, opened his door.]

Yo. Fayt.

[The words were calm and easy, like always. He wanted to know what was up.]

Jan. 10th | 3pm | Hot Springs

[ahappylie]

[As promised, Souji was at the hot springs with a folded furoshiki over a medium sized wicker box right at the hour. He wasn't really certain if this qualified as what some would call a date, but he figured it wouldn't hurt to at least be open to the idea, so he'd brought sake and was wearing a nicer wool kimono than normal as he sat on a nearby rock to the entrance and waited for Cliff to appear.]

Jan. 10th | 3pm | Hot Springs

[aerialassault]

[Souji didn't have to wait long for Cliff to arrive, bearing only a few towels and anything on his person. Despite having suggested the outing a couple of weeks back, Cliff had no idea if their meeting qualified as a date either. At the very least he had a similar train of thought-- his bomber jacket was traded in for something sleeker, and his hair was neatly tied back.

All in all, they probably made for an odd picture when they were together.

He lifted a hand and waved at Souji when he arrived.]

Hey there!

march 25th, afternoon

[etherealblast]

[It had been a very mundane two weeks for Fayt while Cliff and Albel had been gone. Training, hanging out with a few friends and introducing Souji to old action movies aside, it had been relatively calm.

Whenever Cliff and Albel finally return to the community building, they'll be just in time to spot a familiar face preparing lunch in the kitchen, toasting a rather stacked sandwich in a pan.]

[urallmaggots]

[Albel was certainly a sight to behold as they sauntered into the building. He was near covered in blood, to the point where it was hard to tell his clothes had actually been purple at some point in time. His hair was a matted mess, and one of the wrappings on his tails had come loose, with strands of hair flying everywhere. Still, despite his unkempt appearance, he had an almost lazy, content smile on his face.]

[That was, until he saw Fayt in the kitchen. He cast a worried gaze to Cliff, though there was a mischievous glint in his eyes.]

He's cooking; we need to retreat.

[Because Albel was clearly never going to let Fayt forget about blowing up the kitchen. Never.]

May 15, 2014 afternoon

[ahappylie]

[Things had been a little weird lately, but it seemed to have calmed down. It had taken Souji some time to find the right present and even then with what had happened barely a week prior, he'd wanted to wait.

Now that there was a lull in the storm, he knocked on Cliff's apartment door, a bundle in his arms.]

May 15, 2014 afternoon

[aerialassault]

[While it did calm down, there was an unsettling gap in Cliff's memories from the last week. He couldn't remember what all happened-- just that he felt too ill to move for a while...but, everything seemed fine now.

He edged the door open that afternoon, still half dressed as he had been indulging in some laziness during his strange recovery, and lifted his brows in surprise when he saw his partner.

...be glad he's wearing pants, Souji.]

Hey, Souji. [He smiled, opening the door wide in invitation.] What's all this about?

July 18th, early morning

[etherealblast]

[Hopefully Cliff's not too deeply asleep, otherwise he might miss the slight creak of hinges as his bedroom door opens at around 2am in the morning. The intruder isn't exactly the most stealthy, but that might be in part because his clothes don't quite fit him well at the moment, and he keeps tripping over the hem of his now very overlarge shirt.

But that won't stop the five year old from pouncing on Cliff a few seconds later, flinging himself onto the bed in a cannonball-esque leap with a yell.]

Re: July 18th, early morning

[aerialassault]

[Unfortunately, after all of the work with retraining his coordination (along with other skills) in the Battle Dome in recent weeks, Cliff has been sleeping soundly at night. His slumber was deep enough that he completely missed the not-so-stealthy child break into his room under the cover of darkness....

Until he roared with all of the gusto of a lion cub and pounced.

Cliff,jolted back to wakefulness from a most excellent dream, yelped in surprise on impact. He squirmed under the weight of the child while he tried to gather his bearings about what the hell just happened.]