Great Minds Think Alike [Zidane]

[Reno Sinclair]

Another day off…

Reno never minded being away from the office, he enjoyed being able to laze around and do whatever he wanted, but those days were slowly winding down for him. It’d been a good while since he’d hit a local bar, though last time wasn’t all that pleasant. Seventh Heaven had been closed for a few days due to Tifa Lockhart leaving for…a few days to the Icicle inn for something, and Reno was left to go to the only other bar he knew. Some saloon like place on the darker side of town, then Rude had to drag him away…after a brawl of course. It wouldn’t be a normal day at any bar if something stupid didn’t happen, right? The thought made Reno smirk a bit, he wasn’t sure what to do with himself anymore. Cissnei and he had married, tragic things had happened before and after that, and now…well…now they were expecting, how scary was that? To be quite honest, Reno was scared out of his wits, maybe that’s why he enjoyed just getting away from anyone and everything on his days off.

With his hands in his pockets, Reno stared up at the sign that displayed the bar ‘Seventh Heaven’, but he shrugged slightly, wondering if anyone inside had seen him and expected him to come in. He didn’t, he just started up walking again, his eyes away from anyone on the street, downcast as he had the smallest of frowns on his face. He wasn’t sure what to think, what to do. Perhaps it would be best to head back to the cozy little apartment that he and Cissnei called home. He was sure she’d appreciate the company. Having been cooped up in that apartment for awhile now, it had to get boring, of course the red head tried to do what he could to keep her entertained and maintain his job…it was just getting far too stressful for his liking. That’s where today came in, he was just going to wander aimlessly around Edge and collect his thoughts, he had all the time in the world today…and hopefully he made the most of it, rather than waste it like he usually did.

Glancing up from the ground and towards a cluster of people fast walking away from a certain area, Reno raised an eyebrow and pulled his hands from his pockets, watching them move and scatter almost. When he saw the cause of the scrambling of people, he rolled his eyes and ran a hand through his hair, taking steps forward and going against the people to get closer towards said threat. A portal was beginning to appear, Reno knew that look like the back of his hand. He’d been through a handful of them, and seen people come through them, when he saw a portal…he knew exactly what it was, and shuddered. Fond memories did not come from those things, at least for him. Maybe some people liked the other places they went, Reno was not one of those few. Well…okay, Oriens wasn’t bad, but the situation when traveling to Gran Pulse? Well it couldn’t have been any worse. Whoever was coming through to Gaia, he hoped they weren’t a threat, or some creepy old fal’cie with long fingernails of torture and an idea of what you should be doing.

“Good luck to ‘em.” He mumbled low to himself as he folded his arms and stood a great deal away from the portal, waiting, and curious to see as what or who would come out from the other side.

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Words:[/color] 697
Muse:[/color] Good!
Tagged:[/color] Zidane
Wearing:[/color] Turk Uniform
Listening To:[/color] Nothing
Notes:[/color] Sorry for the crappy start 8'D

[zidane]

Man, what a drag... He was still hanging around Alexandria castle, it had been an entire day since he'd returned from his two day absence. The scars running down his right arm had faded into an angry-looking pink, which was apparently cause for concern on Garnet's part. She just couldn't stop fussing over him, could she? Partially, he was very grateful that she worried so much about him. But it did get extremely annoying. Of course, he'd gotten a good talking-to for leaving without warning; but he'd struggled not to laugh through the entire lecture. In the end, he'd ended the conversation by hugging her close; and promising to not do it again. The amount of re din her cheeks when he finally released her had been even more cause for him to laugh; and it was far too difficult to hold it back. He'd kept a straight face as he requested to leave her presence in an attempt to humor her, then he'd burst out laughing as soon as he was out of her sight and earshot. He'd left the castle via the front doors, and made his way to the roof once again. He did like it up there; it gave him such a fabulous view of the the City of Alexandria. Also, at the very top of the highest tower; he just felt strangely free. Maybe it was part of being a Genome, but he did enjoy high places.

So here he was, lounging around on the top of the tallest tower; his tail wrapped around the decorative spire for extra security. It sure was useful to have a tail... He was proud of what he was, and had long since gotten used to looks from people he passed. Those who took time to get to know him, rather than judge him due to his being different... They were quick to learn he was an extremely friendly and outgoing guy, who loved nothing more than making new friends. And of course... Wooing women with stolen prizes. He couldn't help himself, there were just so many pretty ladies around. He didn't consider himself attractive or handsome, but apparently; many girls did. As to why, he had no idea. But it really didn't matter. So long as he was liked, that was good enough for him. He felt like he'd finally found a home, a place to belong, here in Alexandria. And with Garnet there, he'd never been quite so happy in his life before. Lost in his thoughts as he looked down at the beautiful city, he didn't notice the strange shimmer in the air which had appeared on a nearby roof.

It was the quiet whooshing sound that brought him out of his thoughts and back to reality. He leaped up, already in the process of drawing both Mage Masher daggers from their sheathe on his left thigh. The blue eyes narrowed in suspicion as he tail wrapped tighter around the spire; watching that weird glitter in the air on the neighboring roof. Then it suddenly wasn't just a shimmer anymore, a small black orb had appeared; rotating and rapidly growing much larger. What appeared to be a black fog was rolling off in in waves. The wind had picked up dramatically, tossing about his blond ponytail. It was... A curious thing... That was his only thought as it grew large enough that a full grown man would easily be able to stand upright in it. What was it? The suspicion had faded to an excited sense of curiosity, and his tail-grip on the spire slackened. Once he was no longer holding onto it, the youth proceeded to the edge of his roof on his hands and knees, looking at the thing. That was when the powerful wind became a gale, and a shocked gasp escaped his throat as he was lifted from the roof by the suction. He was flying toward the black thing, thrashing about in utter confusion and an instinctive fear. Then everything went black, and it was suddenly extremely cold.

He had no idea what was going on, and he'd squeezed his eyes shut as the darkness enfolded him. It still felt like he was flying, unsupported through a freezing cold void. It made him feel ill. He liked solid ground beneath his feet, even if it was merely the floor of a flying craft. But this was different... He wasn't standing on anything; he was having trouble breathing, or maybe he'd just forgotten to in the shock. Either way, it didn't matter. He curled in on himself, rolling into a ball and refrained from struggling. It didn't seem like a good idea to move too much in whatever this was. He tried to focus on breathing; long, slow, deep breaths of freezing air; anything to distract himself from the awful discomfort of his stomach. Then he felt like he was doing a slow motion somersault, and landing face-first into solid ground. Relief exploded through him. He was alive, the pain in his face was enough to prove that. The blue eyes opened, and he almost forgot to breath again as he sat up in horror. He felt dazed and disoriented, and still extremely ill.

Where was he? This wasn't... Anywhere he'd been before... And there was a crowd of people forming around him; pointing at his tail in particular. Still in utter disbelief, the blond shot a look over his shoulder; just in time to see the black hole thing vanish. He resumed looking around, though there really wasn't much to see except people. Then he felt a sudden jerk on his tail, a flicker of pain rippled up his body from his rear. Zidane leaped up and back flipped away from the human male who'd pulled his tail, glaring as he swished it back and forth. "Not cool, Man!" He snapped. Normally, he was cool-tempered and calm... Serene almost... But the combination of the sudden black thing, whatever the hell had happened; leaving behind Alexandria and Garnet; and a steady fear pulsing through his veins had made him short tempered. The culprit yelled something about his tail being real, and excited murmurs rippled around the "welcoming party". He backed away slowly from the onlookers, realizing he was still holding his daggers. He held these up; though if he looked threatening or if he looked like he was surrendering... He didn't know or care. He noticed that most seemed curious about him; and were murmuring about the black portal thing as well. At least none of them were exactly hostile...

ooc: Woot~ Long post. lol The rest of mine probably won't be quite this lengthy.

[Reno Sinclair]

Portals tended to draw attention, or scare people. Today seemed to be like one of those odd days where people started to form a crowd, making the red head roll his eyes and want to shoo people away. He didn’t like being stared at as it was, would anyone else? Nope. Shaking his head as he stood behind a few people, he watched the portal and noticed it hadn’t closed yet, but a sudden chorus of gasps and pointing flared up when it closed, and things just…people were stupid weren’t they? Hearing someone say something about a blond person, a tail, and a monkey comment, Reno shook his head even more than before, pressing a palm towards his forehead and showing his obvious irritation for these ‘intelligent’ average citizens. After lowering his arms, he started to weave his way through the crowd, trying to see who or what came out of this portal – the monkey comments threw him off for a few moments.

“Get outta the way.” He commented almost in a strained and frustrated voice, and when people turned and saw the black suit, people instantly began to back off and give the second in command Turk some room. When he saw the interesting character who had been dropped off by the portal, Reno finally understood what it was those people had been talking about. He noticed the blond hair – in a ponytail too, way to go guy! – and the daggers out, and of course, the obvious tail that was visible and had been yanked. Aquamarine eyes turned towards the man who had yanked on the man’s tail – which was still oh so weird – and when he did catch the gaze of the tail yanker, he pulled out his EMR and tried to look as serious and professional as possible. “Oi! This is ShinRa business, y’all need t’ get outta ‘ere, leave it to the professionals and get on with yer day, yo.” He commented and people backed off even more. Reno let his eyes flicker around the majorly thinner crowd as he then shot a glance towards the blond portal deportee. “No need t’ get hostile, man, I jus’ got rid of ‘em, put the daggers away and maybe I can lend ya a hand.”

When the crowd had gone away completely, Reno re-adjusted his EMR at his side and folded his arms, he wasn’t going to think that this man was completely harmless, after all he had daggers, a weapon, and he sure looked like the type who knew how to use them, there would be no carelessness today, but…he knew how bad it could be to fall through a portal and be completely lost as to where you were and what you were supposed to do. Lending a hand wouldn’t be too terrible? Though finding portals was easier said than done, he’d tried before, and sometimes it led to little success. Taking one step closer towards the blond, Reno looked around him, over his shoulders and just in the general area. Nothing else seemed to be grabbing attention, and luckily by now people had gotten the hint and didn’t pay much attention towards the Turk or the newcomer, how nice. “Portal deportee, eh? Name’s Reno, kinda helpin’ with portal research aroun’ ‘ere. Been through a few o’ them myself, and you are?” he said almost leaning forward a bit, to be listening intensively. He was interested in the other worlds, though he didn’t like being dragged to them, meeting different people like…Lightning and Fang, Edge, and even those students from Oriens…well…it gave him a lot of information, sort of. Who was this guy? Where was he from? Well, whether or not he decided to cooperate, Reno was determined to find the answers…

…unless he wanted to be interrogated like that Riley chick from a little while ago, and Reno didn’t mind interrogations, especially when he got to be the bad cop in the whole ‘good cop-bad cop’ duo.

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Words:[/color] 765
Muse:[/color] Better!
Tagged:[/color] Zidane
Wearing:[/color] Turk Uniform
Listening To:[/color] Nothing
Notes:[/color] Working on your template! Sorry for the wait!

[zidane]

This was bad... How much more of all these looks could he put up with? Was it his imagination, or was the crowd closing in on him? He didn't exactly have room to swing his arms around without the risk of cutting someone; the closest people were only an arm's length away. His stupefied face began to harden into hostility, and he flipped the daggers in his hands; trying to be threatening. He naturally held them backwards, he was just more comfortable handling them that way. Besides... He liked to flip those things around when in battle. Back-handed grips made it easier to begin the rotation of the weapons. But seriously... He was reaching his limit. If his tail had been a cat's, it would have been fluffed up to twice its size by now. He was on the verge of bolting, leaping high above the crowds until he reached a clear space; then run as if his life depended on it. Of course, maybe his life really did depend on how fast he could get away... "Hey now... I don't want any trouble, go away!" He said, his voice cold and unwelcoming; a very rare occurrence on his part.

Then a red head bobbed through the crowd. Zidane's gaze wasn't attracted by the color really; but more by the fact people seemed to be moving aside for him, parting so he could pass. That could only mean one thing... This guy was dangerous... Did he run around killing of people who were so obviously out of place here? The youth hoped not, he was in too much shock to be able to properly defend himself. But he could at least act like someone who wasn't to be trifled with. Both daggers were raised as he shifted into a more firm defensive position, his tail held in that lose S-shaped curve once again. Both daggers were raised, he planned to join them into that double bladed sword he liked to use on occasion; just too look more intimidating. But the Red-Head spoke before he could act on the impulse. Blue eyes flickered around to fix on the now thinning crowd; this guy could definitely clear a room fast... He was dressed all fancy-shmanshy as well. Probably some high ranked guy in this society. But people normally got high ranks for astounding skills... Ok, so some nice black suit, though the unbuttoned front seemed a bit out of place... He'd said professional... And he'd said Shin-ra... What the heck was that?

Well, it didn't really matter. The guy had indeed chased them all away. If he bore hostile intent, then he would have attacked already. He had no real choice but to do what the guys said. Besides... Something about this guy.. Maybe it was that look in his eyes, or his stance, he didn't even know. But he did know he didn't want to get on this guy's bad side... He looked pretty capable... And maybe he really could do something to help out. The blond youth sighed, then straightened out of his battle stance. "Whatever you say, man." He grunted, returning the mage mashers to their sheath on his left thigh. After a moment, he crossed his arms and looked up at the man's face. The youth was a bit short, but it didn't bother him too much to always have to exert some effort to see people's faces. The man moved forward until he stood pretty close to him, and then continued to talk and introduce himself. Portal Research? Been through some himself? Who exactly was this Reno person? He spoke as if these black portal things were an everyday occurrence here. Well, for all he knew.. They might be... But he certainly didn't fancy going through one again. He still felt disoriented and as if he was going to be sick all over the guy's formal wear.

He took a few deep breaths to try and settle his stomach, then extended a hand to shake with Reno. "Name's Zidane, from Alexandria... Though, I don't think you'll know where that is... I don't recognize this place at all..." He backed up a few steps, and looked around some more. "Uh, can you tell me where the heck I am? Do you know anything about that uncomfortable black thing?" He visibly shuddered. Going through that... Ugh, he hoped he'd never have to do it again. It just didn't suit him.

[Reno Sinclair]

This was just Reno lending a hand. Of course he knew what it was like to be on the other side of a portal and not know what was going on, so what else was he supposed to do? He could’ve easily walked away and let this short blond fend for himself, but something made him turn and decide it was time to help. Not that helping was exactly Reno’s strongest point, but it made him feel slightly better, and it got his mind off of stresses in his own life, it always did. As he began to thin the crowd with his very presence, he started to speak, gaining the attention of those who continued to stare at the new comer, or rather, stare at the tail of the new comer. People were just rude, hadn’t anyone ever told them that it wasn’t polite to stare? Whatever, with ShinRa involved supposedly, people would start moving away and go about their own business. At least the Turks still held a bit of a high seat around here, causing people to drift away…that was always nice.

With a sigh as the people had retreated from their formed crowd, Reno turned and folded his arms across his chest, already speaking to the blond and watching him move out of his aggressive and hostile stance. Well, that was a step in the right direction, so long as there wasn’t any trouble then of course Reno would be able to help to the best of his abilities. Had things turned for the worst, Reno wasn’t afraid to fight, he’d done it on multiple occasions as it was…but fortunately for this man and for himself, that wouldn’t be the case. With somewhat of a smirky grin, Reno felt a little bit more at ease, not having to get out his EMR or defend himself from some tailed short youth. Then again, he’d been against far worse, like…Sephiroth’s remnants, Cloud and his gang…the usual thugs in bars every now and then as well. Still, the less confrontation, the better off everyone would be.

With a brief introduction, Reno extended his hand and firmly shook the shorter man’s, hearing his name and appreciating the cooperation. Zidane of Alexandria. That wasn’t a place Reno had heard of yet, it really started to sink in that there were far more worlds out there than he ever imagined. It was mind boggling to think about, there was Gran Pulse, Oriens, this Alexandria, and of course Gaia. “Yeah, I don’ think I’ve ever heard of Alexandria, you though, yer on a place called Gaia, in the city of Edge.” Reno said with a small shrug before taking a small glance back at where the portal had been previously before disappearing. “That thing was a portal, it sorta leads from one world to another, all we really know about them right now is that they’re unstable as hell, you could end up just about anywhere.” He said before turning a bit and taking a glance down the street. Most people had left to their own lives, not looking back, especially since Reno was involved, that was good, now he could try and help Zidane, how? Well…the portal thing wasn’t easy, you couldn’t just time them and expect to see one every half hour or something like that, really…when it came to the portals, it was all about the waiting game.

“Come on, we won’t be findin’ a portal anytime soon, I can tell ya that much right now.” Reno said with a wave of his hand, gesturing for the blond youth to follow him. What better way to spend this ‘waiting game’ than grabbing a bite or a drink? Though he didn’t believe this guy old enough to drink, it sure beat standing around all day twiddling your thumbs. They could chill out at Seventh Heaven for a bit, until more word on portals got around – which was usually quick – and hopefully find another one within the day. If not, Reno could easily find a place for this Zidane to stay…he knew far too many connections to say he couldn’t do something. This was also a chance to exchange information on worlds, Reno was a curious man, he liked to report what he could to the ShinRa researchers, so instead of taking this man in for a Q&A at the ShinRa building, he could collect the necessary details about Alexandria. “If a portal appears aroun’ ‘ere, we’ll know about it.” He commented, leading the way towards the bar, already starting to think of questions he should be asking…hopefully his own game of ‘twenty questions’ would be okay, either way, he got information.

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Words:[/color] 889
Muse:[/color] Good!
Tagged:[/color] Zidane
Wearing:[/color] Turk Uniform
Listening To:[/color] Something!
Notes:[/color] Sorry for the wait -.-

[zidane]

Weird worlds, weird places, weird people, and weird portals that didn't give a crap about whose lives they ruined by dumping people in strange places. What fun! Zidane snorted as his own thoughts, which were already heavily sarcastic. Man, all he wanted was to get back to his world, he didn't belong here. It was obvious enough by that wonderful welcome he'd gotten. People crowding him, stares, some idiot jerking on his tail without bothering to consider that it might just be attached... At least in Alexadria, people knew him by sight; and most treated him in friendly ways. Then of course, all his friends were there. And that he was here, they'd no doubt be freaking out about where he'd gone. Garnet for one would probably go grey and lose her hair, despite her young age. That thought itself nearly petrified him. Nononononono, Garnet had to stay pretty; she would hate to look in a mirror and see her hair like that. He honestly didn't mind what her hair color was; it could have been neon green for all he cared. But Garnet did mind; she was all about maintaining that regal appearance and attitude. This only gave him more reason to get back home as soon as possible.

Zidane jerked himself out of his all-over-the-place thoughts by mentally rebuking himself. Now wasn't the time to start worrying about hair loss. As long as he kept his pretty blond hair, he would be happy. And the more he stressed out, the more likely he would be to lose that hair himself. So he took a few deep breaths and closed his eyes, trying to calm his rather shot nerves and unsettled stomach. He still felt like he'd be sick at any sudden movements. It was all the portal thing's fault. After a moment, he opened his blue eyes and refocused on Reno; wait, two Reno's...? "City of edge, huh...?" He mumbled, his words slurring until they weren't exactly easy to make out. That was it, he had no idea where the hell he was, and no way home. And when he did get home, he'd have grey-haired Garnet to be lectured by... Zidane swayed on the spot, then plopped down to sit on the ground. He started to rub his eyes, much like a child who had just thrown an unnecessary fit. The tail vibrated slightly as he opened the eyes again; looking after the multiple Reno's starting to walk away. There were four now.

He felt his stomach writhe uncomfortably. Lucky he hadn't eaten since the day before; or there would certainly have been some stuff coming up now. Zidane mumbled after the retreating Reno's. "I think I'm fine where I am thanks." He said weakly, blinking several times. Thankfully, there were only two Reno's now. But that didn't change the queasy feeling in his gut. Then of course, a sharp pain shot up his rear again; forcing him to jump up and trip backward. A few on the onlookers had returned, coming up behind him while Reno's back was turned, and jerking on the tail again. These three men were obviously drunk, and they laughed loudly at the furious look the rather green-faced monkey-boy shot at them.

Zidane scrambled to his feet unsteadily, and started hurling a few rocks he'd picked up of the ground at them; completely forgetting he still had his daggers in his disoriented state. His sudden movement had given him a head rush, and he felt rather lightheaded as the three men split into six again. "Yo! Keep your filthy hands off the tail! It's attached you know!" He yelled at them, throwing another rock which he'd somehow managed to aim decently enough to strike one of them in the head. That, of course, wasn't the best idea when drunkards were involved. Their already red faces seemed to darken to an almost purple; and they came toward him while cracking their knuckles. Zidane shook his head, clearing it a bit; and back-flipped a good several feet away from them. The brief sensation of illness was starting to pass, but he still felt extremely ill to the stomach. All the same, he kept throwing rocks at them, then danced away before they could get close enough to land a strike; taunting them with words and actions. Many of the dispersed onlookers had started to come back; attracted by the enraged yells of the drunk men and applauding appreciatively every time a rock hit home. Zidane's aim was improving as well as his head cleared a bit more.

[Reno Sinclair]

Reno was generally a nice guy. Sure he could be the biggest ass on the face of Gaia at times, but that didn’t mean he was totally heartless. In fact, he was offering to help someone out of the goodness of his heart, now I call that pretty nice. Of course this Zidane guy was just…something else. Reno wanted to head up to the bar for his daily drink…or drinks, I should say, but being stopped by a portal and a crowd had put him back a few minutes. No portal was going to show up right away and sweep Zidane back to his world in a matter of seconds, things just didn’t work that way, and because Reno had been portaled many times, he knew from experience that that wasn’t the way things worked with portals. They were unstable, unpredictable, and who knew when Zidane would get back to Alexandria next? Could be tomorrow, could be a month from tomorrow. Whatever, at least the fiery red head was doing his best to be nice and accommodating.

Taking a few steps, he turned a bit, looking at Zidane remained where he was, raising an eyebrow and pocketing his hands into his suit jacket while he shrugged his shoulders, he then pulled out one hand and turned away, waving a hand briefly. “Alright, if you insist, kid. Just know I tried t’ help ya out ‘ere. You’re gonna regret it sooner or later.” He warned in almost a sing song voice, approving of his rightness that would surely occur sooner or later. Zidane would get lost, he’d get stared at and that tail of his would continue to get yanked unless he stuck around with someone with a lot of…image in the city. No one liked to mess around with Turks if they could help it, that was easily demonstrated when Reno broke up the crowd that had been previously surrounding Zidane minutes ago, but hey, if he didn’t want the Turk’s help, then so be it, at least he’d offered, that was all that mattered right?

Reno was ready to get his drink on, to sit and relax for a bit, but hearing Zidane once more and a few yelps and angry words being thrown towards the newcomer, Reno sighed heavily and whipped around, hands still in his pocket as he watched the monkey boy start throwing rocks at a few drunken dudes who were just making messes of themselves. Rolling his eyes, he started back, a slow swagger of a walk as he watched the show progress, rock after rock hitting targets fairly well, but Reno knew that the blonde’s luck would run out soon enough, not everyone enjoyed watching one of their own getting smashed in the face with rocks. Moving up behind the drunks, Reno put his arms around two of their shoulders, grinning like a fool.

“Yo, let’s just walk away from this like proper gents, yeah? Wouldn’t want things to get ugly would ya? Besides, you wouldn’t wanna pick on a poor kid now would ya?” He said moving away from the men, easing by them and moving towards Zidane, patting his hand on the blonde’s head and doing what he could to ease the tension between…everyone. “I don’t like being the peace keeper all that much, but if ya’ll don’t walk away, then things are going to turn bad, as a ShinRa agent I can promise that and get away with it.” He sounded a bit darker that time before shooting Zidane a disapproving glance, more of a frustrated look with a slight frown, watching the crowd frown as well and move away slowly, disapprovingly, having to move instead of getting a free show.

“Are you tryin’ to get yerself killed, kid? It ain’t exactly the friendly thing to do to start throwin’ things at people in a new world, no matter what they are doin’, best look before you leap kid, otherwise you’re gonna be in a whole heap of trouble.”

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Words:[/color] 770
Muse:[/color] Good!
Tagged:[/color] Zidane
Wearing:[/color] Turk Uniform!
Listening To:[/color] Everybody Loves Me: OneRepublic
Notes:[/color] Nada!