Sharp Exit

[innatelunacy]

They'd managed to avoid the worst of the trouble on their exit from Midgar's ruins, much to Saix's quiet disappointment. They ran into a couple of relatively weak Hollows, new and of low concern, which were quickly dispatched. Saix had hoped for a bigger challenge, but it was probably for the best when they were followed by a shellshocked flock of refugees.

The Turks left for Edge once they'd cleared the rubble, a silent, mutual understanding having been reached with them that it would help no one, now, to continue whatever unfinished business was on the cards. Some of the refugees went too, claiming family, or friends who could help them, but the largest number stayed with the party until they reached Palumpolum. This was, it was reasoned, as far as they could safely take them. Word would be spreading around Edge by now that there had been survivors, and that increased the risks. Rumour travelled faster than feet, and neither Axel nor Saix wanted to run headlong into a welcoming committee that might recognise them for Ryoka.

Aerith, fortunately, agreed. She'd been nervous when they first came out of the shadow of what had once been Midgar, but once they'd travelled further out, to where the wilds of nature shaped the land, instead of the technology of men, she'd seemed to relax and take it in stride.

"Do you want to bring her back to Rabanastre, or do you have somewhere else in mind?" Saix asked of Axel, once the city of Palumpolum was part of the horizon again, instead of breathing down their necks. He was, grudgingly, impressed; Aerith was a city girl, but she hadn't made a single grumble when they'd travelled, which was more than could be said for the refugees that had stayed with them.

Comments

[gotitmemorised]

Axel liked the look of Palumpolum, but knew better than to stick around for any longer than absolutely necessary. Even though the crawling sense of worry and dread had abated since the destruction of Midgar -- small comfort in the wake of the biggest disaster of Spira's modern age -- it would take a while for the worry of being recaptured by Midgar's forces to be completely gone.

"It's up to her," Axel said, shrugging. "She's earned the right to make a decision."

[innatelunacy]

"Mm," Saix grunted, the closest he came to verbal acknowledgement of the idea.

He looked over towards Aerith, who seemed temporarily distracted by the scenery, but who looked directly at him when she felt his eyes on her.

[hearstheplanet]

She smiled at Saix. "I'm coming with you, silly," she told Axel, turning her attention to him for a moment. "You've both helped me, and those people, when you didn't have to, and I'm grateful, but I'm not about to let you dump me and run." She flashed a quick grin, putting one hand on her hip, "Besides, after all your hard work, I should repay you," she looked directly at Axel, "I might even let you take me on a date," she teased, with a bright smile.

Then she looked much more seriously at Saix and told him, "And you shouldn't risk walking around without a healer when people might be looking for you, so wherever you're going, so am I."

[gotitmemorised]

Axel couldn't help but laugh at Aerith's date comment, albeit with a tinge of awkward embarrassment. He scratched the back of his neck and grinned all the same.

"We could use a healer." He couldn't deny that at all. "It's a long way to Rabanastre, though. You up for a long trek?"

Chocobos would attract less attention than going by airship. Not that they were anywhere near any major airship ports anyway.

[hearstheplanet]

Aerith smiled, sweetly. "I think I can manage," she replied. In truth, she'd never been outside Midgar in all the time she could remember, and after the initial bout of nerves and uncomfortable openness, she'd come to like it. The world felt alive around her, and it was terrifying and wonderful at the same time.

[gotitmemorised]

"You'll have to," he said, unable or unwilling to phrase it a little more delicately. "We'll probably have to teach you how to ride. It will be faster if we travel by Chocobo where possible and believe me, you'll definitely want to, once we reach the desert."

He didn't object to the desert heat, but he was well aware that other people didn't fare so well. Giving the donkey work to Chocobos, preferably the hardiest type they could rent, would make it easier on her if she turned out not to be able to tolerate hours and hours of heat.

[hearstheplanet]

Aerith drew herself up and folded her arms, although she was clearly putting on being annoyed rather than genuinely irritated. "I can keep up with you if I have to, don't think I'm soft just because I'm a girl," she told him, although there was still that faint smile.

"We should get some chocobos then, shouldn't we?"

[innatelunacy]

Saix's face twitched with the barest hint of a smile that was gone as quickly as it appeared. "I can see why you like her," he commented, flatly.

He made to continue walking; they needed a chocobo stable. Fortunately, they tended to be planted near population centres, no matter how small the population.

[gotitmemorised]

Axel snorted at what Aerith said and shook his head. His continued grin made it clear that he knew what she said was a joke and that he was continuing in that tone.

"Hey, hey, I don't think you're soft because you're a girl. I just think you might need a little more ... direction, because you were a city girl and this isn't a city."

He wouldn't automatically think that someone was soft just because they were a girl, joking accusation or not.

He knew Larxene.

He pointedly ignored Saix's comment, but glanced sidelong at him all the same, grin in place.

[hearstheplanet]

"I lived in the slums, remember?" She wagged a finger at Axel, plainly amused. "Cities aren't all suburbs and supermarkets. I can handle myself." Still, she was smiling, and even seemed cheerful, content to tease back and forth with Axel for a while.

[innatelunacy]

Saix shook his head, subtly, but caught Axel's sidelong look. Axel, it seemed, had ulterior motives for rescuing Aerith, and yet... it was nice to see his former friend so animatedly like his old self with someone. Even if it made Saix a tiny bit jealous.

They found a chocobo stable before too long. Saix eyed the ugly yellow birds with his usual displeasure. He didn't like them, and they didn't like him, and in this, he and chocobos found common ground.

[gotitmemorised]

Axel, contrary to Saix, didn't mind chocobos all that much. Sure, they smelled bad and were a bit noisy, but they were fast and reliable and kept a lot of the more common beasts off their tails. He had heard tell of Chocobo Eaters from various stable-hands on numerous occasions, but he had yet to see one. He had a feeling that they were like bogeymen for chocobo riders, but he wouldn't put anything past Spira.

"They aren't very nice," he said, speaking to Aerith as he eyed them. "But they're all right. Just try not to breathe too deeply around them and you'll be fine, got it memorised?"

[hearstheplanet]

Aerith seemed faintly amused at the advice, but approached one of the chocobos with care. "They don't smell that bad," she told him, reaching up to tentatively pat the bird on the side of the neck. It responded with a wark, and allowed the petting.

Aerith smiled in response to it, and petted it a little more.

[innatelunacy]

Saix, conversely, only looked grumpier as he watched. The birds nearest him were all responding with a wariness that Saix had long since grown used to. They never misbehaved for him, much, but they also never seemed exactly eager to be near him, a feeling which was distinctly mutual.

He ignored the birds for a moment to deal with the moogle in charge and pay for the rent of three of them, leaving Axel the task of teaching the girl.

[gotitmemorised]

Axel raised an eyebrow at that comment. If his eyebrows were longer, he would have even arched it. He stared at her for a moment and shook his head.

"If you say so," he said in near-amazement, fairly sure that she must be immune to bad smells due to spending so much time in the slums below Midgar. He shook his head and indicated the chocobo that she was petting. "You want that one?"

It seemed to like her enough.

[hearstheplanet]

Aerith nodded. "He seems friendly enough," she said, as the bird warked musically until she took her hand away. "What do you think?" She asked the bird, playfully, "Can you get us to Rabanastre?"

The bird warked again as she petted it once more, and she turned to Axel with a smile. "I think that's a yes," she said, clearly amused. "So, how do you get on?"

[gotitmemorised]

Axel gave the bird a pat and indicated the stirrup closest to her. "Put that foot," he pointed to the correct one, "in there and swing your other leg over the saddle. Grip the pommel to pull yourself up. I'll help you, don't worry."

He scratched his head again.

"If ... you can do that in a dress, anyway." He hadn't considered that she may need to ride side-saddle -- something he, obviously, had no idea about.

[hearstheplanet]

Aerith looked amused and thoughtful for a moment before she unbuttoned the lowest button at the front of her dress, giving herself more room to move. Then, she lifted her foot up into the stirrup with only a little difficulty. The bird was quite tall, and she'd never had to get her foot up that high before, but she managed it. She gripped the pommel with one hand, and the back of the saddle with the other, and then glanced at Axel and told him, "No peeking!"

Then she hoisted herself up, slightly clumsily to swing her leg round and plant herself in the saddle.

[gotitmemorised]

Axel diplomatically covered his eyes with the palm of his hand but grinned nevertheless.

"Would I do that?" He asked, a laugh in his voice.

He decided that it might pay to get Aerith a pair of trousers if she was ever going to accompany them on any jobs. White mages and healers were undoubtedly useful, but if they struggled to ride a chocobo ... well.

He felt the weight and stance of the chocobo alter when she properly mounted it.

"Not bad," he said, looking up at her. "They're pretty easy to control. Pull back on the reins to stop it and dig in with your heels to make it go. There's a bit more to it than that, but I'm sure you'll pick it up as you go on."

[hearstheplanet]

"Well, I have a good teacher," she said in reply, adjusting herself slightly to be more comfortable.

[innatelunacy]

"If you two are done flirting," Saix chimed in, as he headed over. He sounded like his normal dour self, and walked by as if to slosh cold water on the mood.

"You must have a thing for holy elementals," he commented, as he passed Axel and took hold of an unlucky chocobo's reins. It tried to back off, warking unhappily, and then resigned itself to its fate with a grumpy look that matched Saix's own.

[gotitmemorised]

Axel's eyebrows shot up and, for a second, he almost denied Saix's near-accusation. Instead, he decided to suppress his inner Lea and head off the denial with a sighed "Yeah yeah."

He left Aerith to her chocobo and stepped away, going to mount his own bird, but not until he had affixed some travel supplies to the saddle. They weren't going to do so well if they didn't have those on a long, long trip.

[innatelunacy]

They'd both been carrying supplies when they'd first left. They'd depleted somewhat now, but should have enough to see them through. Saix busied himself with the same, keeping a firm hand on his bird's reins before hauling himself up into the saddle. The bird gave an unhappy wark, but at least let him climb up without a fight, which was more than could be said of Saix's early experiences with the birds.

He directed his chocobo over towards Axel's by a couple of steps, and then, sounding like someone who'd thought about it too much, asked, "Has it occurred to you that you don't have to return to Rabanastre, or the Order?"

It seemed out of the blue, but Saix looked completely serious.

[gotitmemorised]

Had it ever occurred to him? Of course it had.

Although he prided himself on being less like his Nobody self and rather more like his original one, he hadn't lost the sly, conniving edge that he'd so deftly wielded back then. As much as he tried to be a decent person, he still planned and schemed, though generally not for nefarious purposes. It was second nature. Axel knew full well that he could simply 'not return' to the Order every time he and Saix went out on a Mark Hunt together. There were enough dangerous monsters in the areas where they hunted big or troublesome game to claim accidental death.

He stayed out of familiarity, out of a shred of loyalty for his childhood friend and, though he would be loath to admit it out loud, safety in numbers. Xigbar was dodgier than a marketplace spiv with a coat full of falsified licenses, but ... better the devil you know than one you don't.

As such, he grinned. "And make Vexen's day?" he asked, shaking his head. "You wish."

[innatelunacy]

A corner of Saix's mouth twitched upwards, and he nodded. "I'd hoped you'd take that view," he replied. "In the event you ever change your mind," he added, "I'll cover for you." He directed the chocobo away before adding, "Or join you."

Going home and dealing with the fall out of leaving in the first place wasn't high on his list of things to look forward to.

He looked over to the girl instead, "This will not be an easy journey for a first time rider. If you begin to struggle, say so."