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[It's rather late in the evening to be out in the snow, but so Aerith is. Behind ch. 4, out in the forest, she's cleared the fresh-fallen snow from a small patch of earth and is now kneeling down in it, talking to Faeren.]

Wasn't it strange back then? Everyone changed so suddenly! ...Were you...a little nervous? Hm... But...people seem to be treating the forest and plants all right. Better than they do back home.

...Did I talk to you last time? No, you don't need to tell me. I'm sure I did. You don't have a voice, but still, it's less quiet when I'm talking to you.

[...and so on. In general, Aerith is just naturally chatty with spirits anyway. She'll be doing this spirit-talking for a while into the early night, roaming around the perimeter of the village to see if she can get in touch with Nala... The cold and still-falling snowflakes don't seem to deter her. This is more important.]

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[A minute or two later Zack heads out to meet her at the back of the building, crouching down in the snow beside her.] Okay, so how's it done? ...Actually, maybe you better start at the beginning, so I don't get lost or anything.

There are six important spirits in Luceti--but I'm just trying to talk to two right now. Their names are Faeren and Nala. Faeren is the earth spirit, and Nala can teach people healing magic. Mm, you have to--reach out to them, and open yourself up. It's a little hard to describe. They don't exactly have voices, but it's like listening really hard.

Oh, and Faeren's kind of shy. So you can't scare her off!

Hmmm. That doesn't sound too hard! [Well, alright, it is kind of complicated for somebody who knows jack about talking to anything that isn't right in front of him, but he's going to try, dammit.] And hey, how could anybody get scared off by this face?

Weelll... [brb peering at your face.] I suppose it's not all that scary. [She start shucking off her right glove, touching her hand lightly to the ground. Yes, it's cold. She still feels like it's better this way.]

[That scary? Sob. He watches her movements though, brows furrowing.] Does that help? It looks pretty chilly.

[She likes to tease too much.] It is pretty chilly. I'm sure I'll put this back on soon! But it does help, to feel the earth. She appears more easily to people who garden, the guide said. Of course, it also says being outside a lot helps. That fits you just fine~

[She looks to the earth now, and the next time she speaks, her tone is quite obviously different, more reverent.] Faeren...this is Zack. He's a friend. [She's not sure if or how much it will help, but she figures introductions never hurt anything.]

[Hmmm. He's not feeling much, but he's never really been good at this. Looks like he'll have to put in twice the effort.]

Hi, Faeren! Nice to meet you, uh. If you're there. Don't be shy, I promise I don't bite.

[...Okay, he feels kind of silly, talking to nothing like this.]

Don't worry, she's here.

Does it feel weird?

Kinda weird. [No point in lying. He drops his knees right into the snow, gloved fingers brushing over the dirt.] But, uh. I'm still listening! ... You sure I'm not getting in your way here, though?

[She slips her own glove back on, her smile quiet.] If you were, I'd say. It's fine. I'll get other chances to talk to her, you know how I am with flowers.

Doesn't that mean, "yes but I'm too polite to tell you to go away"? [He says it mostly in jest, but really, the last thing he wants to do is get in her way with something like this. If Ancients were all about talking to the planet and whatnot, she's probably been missing it, right?]

Hmmm, you must be mixing me up with someone more polite. I can tell people when to buzz off! Remember, I asked you to come out in the first place.

Heh, can't argue with that. Alright, time to double my efforts!

[And with that, he withdraws his hands and instead flops onto his back in the soil, eyes closing.]

How's this, Faeren? Hit me with your best shot!

[She giggles--really, Zack, how goofy.]

And you were fussing about me putting my hand on the ground! That must be cold.

Don't forget, SOLDIERs are tough! A little snow isn't going to defeat me.

[It is pretty chilly though, so he's hoping Faeren doesn't take too long.]

Hmm.

...It's okay if you can't hear her. I just wanted to share this with you.

[Zack blinks up at her, stunned into silence for a little while. Unexpected, but certainly nice to hear, especially from her. After that moment passes, he grins, arms shifting to cross behind his head, relaxing.]

I'll stay here with you until you're ready to go back inside then, how about that?

[She shifts a little at the silence, focusing on the earth again. She wanted to share this with him, because there are so many things she isn't sharing with him, hasn't shared before. And he was away for so long, and she wants him close because he gave her so much--]

[At the question, she nods.]

That sounds good.

[...Though she realizes that at the moment, she's not really hearing Faeren because she got herself stuck thinking about Zack. Oops. Let's try this again.]

[He grins, subtly watching her as he relaxes in the snow. He really did miss this- just hanging out, no commitments to anything else, just the two of them.

And Shinra can't call him to work anymore. There's no downside to this.]

[She rubs her hands together and then brings them up to her lips, puffing warm air out over them. The air is cold and crisp, feeling clean. It's a lot different from Midgar's.]

[Zack waits in the silence for a while, but eventually his horrible attention span distracts him into talking again. At least he tried though, right? >_>]

...hey, Aerith? Are you okay with living with me?

[Poor puppy. She understands.

...Is a little uneasy about that question, though. Why is Zack asking...? She looks over at him, her lips pursed in concern.]

I like staying with you. I don't want to be by myself.

Is something wrong?

No, nothing wrong. I just don't want you to stay with me if you'd rather be with Cloud and Tifa or something. [She's been with them more recently than him, after all.]

We're all neighbors, Zack. I can see them anytime.

...Just wanted to make sure. [And maybe he's not as secure as he thinks.]

someday... SOMEDAY...

Someday, Aerith will stick her foot in her mouth? Indubitably.

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