Of Chalices, Trees and S'mores

[shurikenfemale.livejournal.com]

Characters: Cissnei, Reno, Zack, Tseng
Progress: Closed; follow-up post here
Summary: The Turks are out and about, investigating Cissnei's Crystal Chalice
Location: Qu's Marsh and the routes in-between
Date: September 30, 1804
Warnings: Reno cussing, Cissnei being somewhat emotional, violence and monster killing


After Reno helped Sephiroth to settle in at the mansion in Lindblum, the two began to trek to Qu's Marsh. According to amassed information, there was a strange tree at the Marsh. Maybe it's a Myrrh tree like the ones the Selkies spoke of? They wouldn't know until they got there. The Chalice had been such a mystery to Cissnei, and now that a total of three people had a Chalice, there surely had to be a reason why they all found one.

They walked across terrains, talking of nothing and everything, sometimes staying silent for the sake of Cissnei, who sometimes truly could not handle Reno's confusing motormouth. It was turning late, a little too late, but luckily they managed to get most of the way to the Marsh. Both decide that it was a good time to stop and rest and finish the rest of the trip the next morning.

Cissnei starts to set out her sleeping bag underneath a large tree they came across. "Hey, Reno... Um..." She pauses and tries to figure out how to word her question without offending him. Rufus seemed quite flat about what he told her. "Rufus... Rufus told me that Veld's daughter was behind AVALANCHE. When? Why?"

Comments

[turks-reno.livejournal.com]

He plucked a marshmallow out of the bag, then flicked it at Cissnei's head in a light lob. "He's a human being, Ciss. Talk to him. Make friends. Just cuz he likes Aerith doesn't mean he can't like you. But he can't do that if he doesn't know you're an option. And you're not an option if you're all business with him, and no fun. And if it doesn't work out? It's gonna be hard, yes, but you'll have had fun, and you can take some pride that you did something about it instead of hiding on the sidelines, just watching and never participating."

Since when did Reno turn into a philosopher? He supposed since he got to this place, and his world got set on its head for a while. "And in the meantime? We can eat s'mores and go trudging through murky, soppy swamps for our boss." He snickered then, and nibbled on his treat contentedly. Yeah, Rude was clueless that Reno liked him - but he was still there. And he always would be.

[shurikenfemale.livejournal.com]

She took the fallen marshmallow then threw it at Reno's nose with deadly accuracy. "Easy for you to say, you have more charm than all of ShinRa combined." She grabbed another marshmallow and began to roast it. "This is the high life Reno, didn't you know?" she asked him with a grin. Yeah, Cissnei could afford to take a cue or three from the redhead every so often.

She thought about how it would be fun in talking to Zack more than usual. Would it really? Maybe on this world, but back home? Since when was she this doubtful? Since I landed in this world, she tells herself. "I need to stop thinking so much and so hard," she said mostly to herself.

[turks-reno.livejournal.com]

Reno shook his head. "All the charm in the world doesn't mean I get what I want. Though... You think I've got charm?" He blinked at that, stunned and flattered. "Er, thanks?" He leaned back a little, popping a new marshmallow on the stick once his current treat was finished.

"The high-life, huh? Remember that when we're knee-deep in mud tomorrow. I hear it's good for the skin, though..." He snickered, but sobered a little at Cissnei's next comment, shrugging. "Thinking is fine, so long as you're not wasting time worrying about things that are beyond your control. Or if you're giving yourself trouble in doing so. We're Turks, Ciss. We're usually up to our eyeballs in trouble *without* looking for more." He gave her an encouraging grin then, arching a brow.

"Worry about Zack when we get back. And talk to the poor boy. At the very least, you'll be his friend. For now, let's focus on this chalice of yours. And... since we're out here, do you mind me asking Rufus if we can check out Midgar, too? I know it's all overgrown, but... I want to see it again. Nostalgia, I guess."

[shurikenfemale.livejournal.com]

"ShinRa doesn't have very much charm, though," she teased. "I guess I could use a bit of a facial now that we're out here.

"Yeah, sure. We might find something interesting in this Midgar." She made a new little s'more, licking off the chocolatey excess from the sides. "Maybe we'll find something that's ours," Cissnei muses thoughtfully. "Wouldn't that be something."

[turks-reno.livejournal.com]

Reno smirked. "If there's a clicky-pen there that still works, I call dibs." He gave a little laugh, then sealed off their bags of smore-making ingredients. "Let's save the rest of these for after the swamp. I have a feeling we'll be happy for some sugary food and a campfire then. Besides, it's getting late."

All items were returned to his pack, and his bedroll was opened up, setting it nearby Cissnei's. "Time for good little Turks to get some shut-eye. We're gonna need it."

[shurikenfemale.livejournal.com]

"You can take it," she said with a smile. Cissnei stretched and laid back. "Definitely."

~The next morning~

The two had made their way closer to the tree and Cissnei was surprised by just how swampy it actually was. "Lovely," she said. "I expect new clothes after this," she added as she began to roll up her pants and shifted her packs higher up on her back.

[turks-reno.livejournal.com]

The next morning had been full of taking down their campsite and hefting their packs into the swamp. Unlike Cissnei, Reno didn't even attempt to pull up his slacks - he was going to get muddy no matter what - he knew it. Instead, he gritted his teeth and headed in, glooping and slopping alongside the determined female. "New clothes? Here? I don't know if they even make this kind of fabric here," he insisted with a frown, pushing aside some reeds. Some areas were awful, but there were spots where dry ground could actually be found, and he kept them on -those- spots as long as humanly possible.

"The question is: where is this tree Tifa mentioned? It can't be that far in... can it?" He hoped not. Getting muddy might be part of the job, but it ranked high on the 'downside' of being a Turk.

[shurikenfemale.livejournal.com]

"Well, at least some to use while these get washed," she said with a bit of a frown. She shook her head and shrugged when he asked about the tree. "I don't think the maps on our phones will help us locate a tree, will it?"

Cissnei loathed, of all things, being or looking unkempt and she was not at all happy that her perfect, pristine suit was getting ruined by muck. You'd think they would have already built some kind of traveling system across the swamp.