Etraya Inbox

[loveandsin]

This is Vincent Valentine. Leave your message.

[ And he will check it if he can figure out how to do so. ]

Comments

audio | a few hours after Aurora's mission announcement

[nimbuster]

Hey. Saw you chatting with Aurora about the mission. I got a favor to ask.

[loveandsin]

I was. It was not particularly helpful.

[ Vincent feels a little too much like a science experiment here. ]

What is it, Cloud?

[nimbuster]

[Cloud hesitates for just a moment. How does he tell Vincent anything when he doesn't understand it himself? Will Vincent still trust him after this, or will he change his mind about the kind of person he thinks Cloud is?

But he knows Vincent is the best person here for this job. So the hesitation is brief.]

Don't think it'll come to this, but just in case. If this stuff tricks me into thinking Sephiroth is here, I need you to stop me from hurting anyone. Do whatever you have to. You good with that?

[loveandsin]

[ Vincent saw what happened outside the temple of the ancients, so the request does not actually come as a surprise to him. He knows Cloud would not want to hurt anyone just as he did not want to hurt Aerith when he was pursuing the black materia. ]

If that is your wish.

[ Vincent would want the same thing were he the one out of control. ]

[nimbuster]

[Cloud seems to relax just a little at the acquiescence.]

Thanks, Vincent. I owe you one. [Then, slightly wry,] More than one, at this point.

A text

[miniroth]

How well do you know Cloud Strife? I have some concerns.

"Not at all leave me alone" is acceptable.

un; valentine (text)

[loveandsin]

I know his name.

[ Which is more than this young man has given to Vincent. ]

What concerns do you have?

[miniroth]

I'm unsure his mental health is being seen to, and I'm not sure who to address it with.

[One day it will occur to him that he had yet to actually introduce himself properly.]

[loveandsin]

What makes you think so? Has he behaved strangely?

audio!

[nimbuster]

Vincent, heads up. We got a problem. ...it's Sephiroth. He's here.

audio

[loveandsin]

[ It takes him a moment to respond because Vincent has to think about that. ]

I know. He recently contacted me out of concern for you and what occurred during the fog. Don't you remember?

[ Cloud isn't losing it again, is he? ]

Re: audio

[nimbuster]

Not that one - wait, he what?

[Cloud's not at all sure how to feel about that, but regardless:]

The Sephiroth we know. The adult. He's here.

[loveandsin]

.... are you sure?

[ Because thought he saw Sephiroth in the fog, too. ]

Action after Pack Mule time

[repaintress]

[ To be here is a fragile joy that feels as though it is sculpted from porcelain. Clea wanders the empty halls of the Musée, taking her time to stop and look at the works on display. Some, she knows quite well: familiar with them from seeing them in the museum in her own time. Others give her a start: pieces crafted by her peers - ones that in her time are sketches in ateliers or ideas bantered about over wine.

It is in front of one of those pieces Clea has stopped, looking up with a rare look of softened awe spreading across her features. How lovely, to see that he had worked past his difficulties and rendered the piece that had challenged him so. She stands, posture perfect and straight, hands clasped in front of her, looking like a woman having a religious experience.

She is so entranced that she does not hear the footsteps behind her, focused as she is on the artwork in front of her. ]

[loveandsin]

[ After delivering the last of the boxes (he left the heavier stuff for Cloud--the weight is a representation of their guilt), Vincent thought he might tour the museum a little and take in some of the art. He actually likes art quite a bit, along with some other solitary pursuits that don't require him to interact with other people.

As he's moving through the gallery, he notices Clea standing in front of a painting. Despite the golden armor he wears on his boots, he's incredibly quiet as he moves in her direction. Eventually, he stops ten feet behind her, not wishing to disturb her. Instead, he looks from her back to the painting and wonders what she sees when she looks at it. What does it say to her? Silently, he observes. ]

[repaintress]

[ Although she could look at the piece forever, there are other parts of the museum that also demand her attention. She'll need to take inventory of the maintenance supplies that came with the building and start determining a care schedule for the art. She'll also need to walk the grounds and take inventory of the outside pieces and determine how to protect them from the weather. Does Etraya have inclement weather outside of the fog?

She isn't certain.

Mind brimming with logistics, Clea takes a step backwards. Then another. And on the third, she finds herself slamming into Vincent, upon whom she turns around with an irritate look, all sign of her previous serenity having vanished. ]

Can I help you?

[ The subtext is clear. 'What?' ]

[loveandsin]

[ Vincent is looking at the painting as Clea begins to back away from it, only to have her bump directly into him. He turns his crimson eye down to regard her and what appears to be annoyance at his existence. ]

I was observing the art.

[ Is that something she can help him with? Possibly, but he thinks the question was rhetorical. ]

un: peintre | text

[betenoir]

Is this Monsieur Valentine? This is Renoir Dessendre. We must speak.

[loveandsin]

Hello, Mr. Dessendre. If this is about your list, I completed the tasks. Was there something more?

[betenoir]

The custodian of the museum has returned home. I will be assuming her role going forward. Do you wish to continue with your position?

[He does not ask if the other man has objections, for he knows he is the most qualified.]

[loveandsin]

I see.

[ He wonders if Cloud knows. ]

Yes, I'd be willing to continue assisting.

[ It gives Vincent something to do with his time. ]

Post Heist

[betenoir]

There were visitors after hours.

I require assistance in checking the collection.

[This message is waiting in the inbox from the early hours of the morning after.]

text to action

[loveandsin]

[ The message doesn't wait long. Sleep is more of a suggestion than a necessity.

After hours? That's concerning. Who would go after hours except to take something? And what would they want? It's not like the museum is keeping anything that might help with missions. ]

I am on my way.

[ Soon after sending his reply, Vincent leaves his apartment and makes his way to the museum. It's early enough that Vincent does not encounter anyone on the way, which gives him time to think about why anyone would go into the museum during non-operational hours. Wondering doesn't result in anything, though. Getting proper answers will.

Once he's in the museum, he heads straight for the back offices, where he expects Renoir might be. ]

[betenoir]

[There are numerous collections that require indexing. Hundreds of thousands of pieces. This latest nonsense is not the reason he sought assistance from the constructs of this place - but it should certainly prove their usefulness. There is a personal nature, a gut instinct this happened for a reason, and his mind goes back to his exchange with his son about his latest work.

He is occupying a chair when Vincent arrives. There is nothing close except indexes and files, though there are frustrated signs of his tension, his tense posture and his elbow on the table.]

Please accept my apologies for calling you out this hour.

[It is early.]

[loveandsin]

[ Early by some standards. For Vincent, time has little meaning except to prolong his suffering. ]

No need.

[ He shuts the office door behind him for privacy's sake. ]

Can you tell me what happened?