audience: cloud

[mygod]

Comments

[residentmerc]

...Faulty status quo?

[ hm. maybe that's something else to think about. also if only the sole problem was that they were het and needed couples' counseling instead of whatever the plot of ff7 is doing. damn. ]

She's usually decent enough at judging people. [ decent enough, because cloud will still feral kitten hiss at famine if pushed ]

[egodist]

Hm.

[ he doesn't know if that applies to him because he doesn't think he's a good guy so he'll just let it slide. anyway: ]

I don't trust that people who smile all the time are actually fine.

[ PLAINLY ]

[residentmerc]

[ ah. hmmm. ]

She's not. [ aerith carries a lot of pain and he has known that since he met her, honestly? and he's not. even good with people. but; ] Doesn't mean her smiles aren't real, too.

[egodist]

I never said they weren't.

[ it's not really said judgmentally? more like objective fact from an extremely outside observer. scien is a bitch on purpose so much of the time, but he doesn't really care what other people's personalities are like as long as they're still effective ]

But that is what I mean by 'faulty status quo'. She cannot keep everything to herself forever. She shouldn't.

You will likely be key in helping her through that.

[residentmerc]

... It's not like I haven't been trying.

[ but unfortunately cloud is also the kind to keep everything inside until one day he dies and is not the best at it. but speaking of keeping everything inside. he shakes his head because he doesn't want to talk to famine too deeply about this; ]

Thought you didn't discuss what other people spoke of with you during these?

[egodist]

This is my assessment of a person. Not content of our conversations. And evidently, nothing you don't already know.

[ so it's fair game ]

[residentmerc]

What are you hoping talking about it will do?

[ he does not think scien is the kind to discuss things just for the sake of discussing things? he is maybe wrong. ]

[egodist]

You looked uncomfortable when I brought it up.

I am telling you it's not your fault.

[residentmerc]

[ WELL OKAY HE CLEARLY DIDN'T EXPECT THAT EITHER AND HE JUST STARES UNCOMFORTABLY AND STUPIDLY AT SCIEN. THAT'S THE TAG. ]

[egodist]

[ help me

stares back at him....? okay? ]

[residentmerc]

... Wasn't expecting you to say that. That's all.

[egodist]

[ shrugs ]

I only bother with factual statements.

[residentmerc]

[ he is not sure how much that is true and he does raise an eyebrow about it but doesn't. argue. ]

... Right. Well. Thanks for listening to her, I guess. [ moving on because it sounds like aerith is at least venting to SOMEONE even if not him, and if tifa isn't around he guesses scien will do!!!! ]

[egodist]

[ scien notes the eyebrow raise bc going 'no trust me i'm a truthful guy' is probably the shadiest thing ever. he prefers actions over words anyway ]

It is no chore. The two of you are hardly the most aggravating people to talk to.

[residentmerc]

[ thinking about who else is in this game for 0.2 seconds ]

Yeah. I can believe that. [ they have such a wild variety... of people ] A lot of them come to you?

[egodist]

More than I'd like, but I prefer to be left alone in general.

[residentmerc]

Prefer observing at a distance, too?

[egodist]

Yes. I've been dragged into too many social engagements lately...

You don't exactly seem like you're jumping for joy with every invitation either.

[residentmerc]

Yeah, well. Most of the time, I'm not interested.

[ #catchphrase ]

[egodist]

Then our sentiments align.

People are so.... loud.

[residentmerc]

[ with the kind of slow, pained sigh of someone whose party is made up of 90% loud people. and also vincent ]

Yeah. Yeah, they are.

[egodist]

[ such a mood.... ]

But sometimes... collaboration is necessary...

[ said

so unwillingly ]

[residentmerc]

[ okay, well. that makes him huff a bit of a laugh ]

Doesn't happen to you often, does it?

[egodist]

No.

[ just no ]

It's been a while since I encountered a problem I couldn't fix by myself.

[residentmerc]

Guess I've got that over you. I've had to work in groups for a couple of months now.

[ har har. the joke is cloud is also a fake loner but no one needs to know that ]