call me out 2024

[riyuji]

【the ❝CALL ME OUT❞ meme】





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last updated February 11, 2024

» Above are the characters I am willing to play right off the bat. Everyone else could be found over yonder. » If there's anyone up there you wanna play with, hit me up with their name on the subject line and a scenario as a reply. Alternately, leave it blank and I'll come up with a scenario. » We can also plan something out. Poke me at riyuji. » Specify game, AU, or universe if needed. » Open to action tags, prose, picture prompt starter, tfln, gen text. » Want the original code for this? It's here.

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[spikyheaded]

[Sleep doesn't take Cloud that night. Instead, the quiet and stillness is replaced by the frantic buzzing of his thoughts as he replayed the last few days over and over in his head. He lies still, eyes closed despite the rustling and shifting of the rest of the party, willing his body, and moreso his mind, to let him rest.

He finally relents a few minutes later, sitting up on his spot. Maybe it would do him some good to survey the area just to keep himself busy. Scanning the camp, he notices that Tifa is missing and he quickly gets on his feet to look for her.

It isn't long before she spots her by a ledge, looking out at the expanse before her. He's reminded of Aerith's garden back in the slums, but the area around Midgar had been dry, nearly devoid of life besides a few plants and monsters. Somehow, it felt like a poor comparison. Two things remained constant though—Tifa and the stillness of the night.

Taking a few tentative steps, he approaches her quietly, not wanting to spook her.]

Hey. [His voice is low when he speaks.] Was wondering where you'd gone off to.

[heavensfist]

[ His quiet voice brings her back to the night, but Cloud's presence is always welcome. Things are odd and complicated in a way that they hadn't been in Nibelheim, but despite a very confusing portion of his story, Cloud had grown to be stronger and more handsome than she could have imagined. He's also been so reliable. Tifa's been able to throw herself into their mission without hesitation because she knows Cloud will have her back.

But strong arms can't always keep away the doubt or sadness. ]

Hey you. Can't sleep?

[ Her gaze returns to the expanse before her, but Tifa pats a spot of rock beside her. ]

There's room for a second, if you want to sit.

[spikyheaded]

[Cloud looks over to the spot, then back to Tifa. After a few moments, he settles down beside her, his elbow leaning against a bent knee.

There was a part of him that still couldn't believe that they somehow found each other again after all these years. The last time he had seen her had been back in Nibelheim and he was almost certain that Sephiroth had cut her down then. He had since been filled with regret that he wasn't able to save her back then. That he wasn't able to keep his promise.

Yet somehow she sat beside him now, alive, well, and looking far more beautiful than he could ever remember. He regarded her for a moment longer, mako-eyes unblinking, almost luminescent in the dark. But he turns away, suddenly self-conscious and not wanting to be caught staring.

He clears his throat and looks to the sky before them. Without the man-made sky of the slums and the light pollution of the upper plate, the stars shone brightly against the inky-blue sky.]

Kind of reminds me of that night back home.

[Back to when a promise was made between them.]

[heavensfist]

[ Everything reminded her of that night. So often, when she was working her way out of medical debt, she wondered if Cloud would show up. It was an impossible, romanticized dream, but Tifa never stopped thinking about the night in a small town when she made him promise to be her hero. He's fulfilled that promise, time and time again, but there was so much that happened between now and then. They were different people.

But the promise stays in her heart. ]

The stars?

[ Are they the catalyst for the memory? ]

They're more like Nibelheim here.

[ With a cock of her head, Tifa tries to smile, but it fails. ]

Can I get a second promise?

[spikyheaded]

[It wasn't just the stars, no. They might've been a part of it but the simple act of being here with Tifa helped bring Cloud back to that night. Despite the haziness of the last seven years, the night of their promise remained one of his strongest memories.

Cloud's brows raise on his forehead, his head tilting ever so slightly.]

A second promise?

[Where's this coming from? It still felt like he had yet to fulfill his end of the promise to her. But if she wanted a second one, who was he to deny her? He could never deny Tifa.]

Sure. What promise are we talking about?

[heavensfist]

Promise me... that we won't lose anybody else.

[ Crimson eyes focus on him. It's an unfair burden to place on his shoulders, but Tifa hates the way she feels right now. It's Nibelheim on a smaller, still painful scale. Everything she'd built is gone. Friends she'd made are dead. The task set in front of them is massive and dangerous. What if Barret were to die for real? Aerith? Cloud? ]

Promise me that I won't lose you.

[ Tifa has never been able to honestly express her feelings for Cloud. They're deeper than friendship, and the longing for more has remained no matter how life got. But, she needs that promise. Tifa needs to be able to believe that promise. ]

sorry rl got hectic ;;

[spikyheaded]

[The surprise from her request is evident on his face, a quiet gasp the only sound he makes. Cloud recovers a moment after, closing his mouth, quietly mulling over her words. Tearing his gaze away from her, he looks off into the distance.

It was a big ask. One that he couldn't simply say yes easily, as much as he wanted to, especially if it meant looking over everyone else too. That had always been what he planned; what he wanted to do. But after the losses they had already haf—Biggs, Jessie, and hell they don't even know how Wedge fared after they'd met up with him—his confidence on the matter wavered. But that didn't mean that he would stop trying anyway.

The fact that she mentions him specifically and how she didn't want to lose him either. He'd looked away not because of his lack of confidence, but because it had made his heart skip a beat. His hands suddenly feel clammy as he curls his fingers into a fist then opens them once more, trying to regain his composure.]

I'm not going anywhere.

[His reply is accompanied by a shake of his head, blond spikes shifting slightly as he moved. That much, he knew he could promise her.]