Sephiroth: “Oh boo hoo. Guess you’ll have to cancel dorkville. I wasn’t going to hang out in there anyway.”
Originally Published: 5/31/01 . 61 pages
Synopsis
It’s the site anniversary, and Lark hits her head, forgetting everyone and everything – even her own name! Can they get her to remember again? Find out how the ramble room came to be started…
Ramble Milestones
Nothing this time.
The story of how it all began. Better to explain it later rather than never, right? Honestly when I started writing these I had no idea how long it would last. I had no origin story in mind. I enjoy how this ramble reflects back on the earlier rambles, like the mention of Tseng and his stocks. I also remember what a pain in the ass it was to do a search on all the past rambles trying to find mentions of Lark’s name for the ending.
(all the ramble girls are sitting in the ramble room, reminiscing…I think I spelled that wrong…)
Noelle: “You know, it’s been a whole year since we started hanging out here.”
Ashley: “And over a year since we started hanging out with the Gundam Wing guys.”
Shell: *painting nails* “I’ve been playing FF8 for almost a year and a half and I still haven’t beat it.”
Lizzie: “I’ve never even really played it.”
Katie: “This year has just flown by, hasn’t it?”
Shell: “Not fast enough.”
Noelle: “What are you complaining about, Shell? Don’t tell me you’re unhappy we ended up here!”
Ashley: “Yeah! Look at all the stuff Rude gives you!”
Shell: “I wasn’t complaining about the stuff…”
Lizzie: “Not to alarm anyone, but where is everyone else?”
Katie: “Yeah… You’d think other people would be around on the freakin’ anniversary.”
Noelle: “I just hope this turns out better than the site anniversary.”
All girls: *shudder*
Katie: “And to think I *almost* had Irvine.”
Shell: “At least I got a beach condo out of it.”
Lizzie: “Let’s see what’s going on.”
(they get up and peer out the door. they look right, look left, but see nothing)
Noelle: “I never thought I’d ask this, but where the hell is Lark?”
Ashley: “I don’t see Sephiroth either. *Hint hint*.”
Noelle: “Skank.”
Lizzie: *shrugs* “Let’s go back and sit. Someone cute will show up eventually.”
(so they do. and they’re silent for a long moment)
Katie: *brightly* “I know! Let’s sing a song to pass the time!”
Girls: *sweat drops*
……………………………………………………………………………………..
(meanwhile… not too far away in her room, lark is in there, going through her drawers with a scowl)
Lark: “I can’t find *anything* to wear!!”
Sephiroth: “Are you kidding? You have a million outfits! I have like 3!”
Lark: *gives him a look* “That’s because you insist on wearing the same thing every day.”
Sephiroth: *looks down at his typical leather getup* “Well… I look so good in it.”
Lark: “Did I say you didn’t?” *throws up hands in frustration* “I have nothing good for the anniversary!”
Sephiroth: “Well maybe if you wore a color besides red and black…”
Lark: *gives him a look*
Sephiroth: “……..I know I’m one to talk, but….”
Lark: *eyes light up* “Ooh! I forgot to check the bottom drawer!”
(so she crouches down and opens the bottom drawer and starts going through it. sephiroth taps his foot in boredom while he waits. suddenly lark’s eyes light up and she grabs something and goes to stand)
Lark: “Here we–“
(but her speech is abruptly cut off, because when she goes to stand she hits her head really hard on the overhanging shelf of the dresser. she looks kind of dazed a minute, before she passes out)
Sephiroth: *alarmed* “Lark!!! Lark???” *rushes over*
………………………………………………………………………………….
(sometime later…lark has been laid on her bed, and there’s a huge of group of people just standing around staring at her solemnly.)
Noelle: “Well this sucks.”
Ashley: “Figures something crappy like this has to happen on the anniversary.”
Shell: “Although it’s not too surprising that Lark hit her big, stupid head on something.”
Vincent: “How long has she been unconscious, angel?”
Sephiroth: “An hour… The hospital said that she doesn’t have a concussion and should be fine when she finally comes to.”
Lizzie: “You got in and out of the hospital in an hour??” *twitch*
Laguna: *pats her on the shoulder* “Hey, hey. Relax.”
Reno: *sigh* “We were *supposed* to be partying today…”
Irvine: “I know, man. But we can’t without Lark. She built this place.”
Rufus: “And I filled it with furniture!”
Zell: “Heh, ya know, I can still remember the first day. We had that party, remember?
Shell: “All too well…”
Shell: (running over) “Help me, Lark! Your freakish Final Fantasy friends are scaring me.”
Lark: (without turning around) “Shell, I told you that I can’t do anything about Sephiroth. That’s the way he is. If I could change him, I would.”
Shell: “No, not Sephiroth! Katie and Lizzie chased him off. It’s that guy! With the cigarette!”
Lark: (whirls around) “Cid!! No smoking in here!”
Cid: “$(&@#$(@!&!”
Lark: “I don’t care. You put that out right now. And lay off the whiskey for awhile.”
Cid: (walking away) “@#$@^*&@*.”
Shell: “You can understand that?!”
Ashley: “Sure. Cid always talks like that.”
Shell: *shakes head* “I guess I’ll never understand.”
Zell: “And then we had that contest! And I won!”
Ashley: “We have a winner!”
Noelle: “Yup!”
Lark: “The winner is….”
All girls: “Zell Dincht!”
All guys except Zell: “WHAT?!”
Seifer: “Chicken-wuss!?”
Squall: “Whatever…”
Irvine: *frowns* “They didn’t pick me…I bet it was the hat.”
(Sephiroth faints)
Zell: “Yeah! I won! What’s my prize?”
Lark: “Free Garden hot dogs!”
Zell: *fist in the air* “All right!”
Seifer: “Shut up, chicken wuss. Now’s not the time to plug your one accomplishment.”
Zell: “Hey!” *flips out*
(lark stirs a little)
Sephiroth: “Shut up, Zell. She’s waking up!”
(they all watch excitedly as lark stretches a little and then opens her eyes, looks around, getting a sort of confused look)
Lark: “Where am I?”
Seifer: “Well you’re not in Kansas anymore!” *squall hits him* “Ow!!” *rubs his arm*
(lark scans the room once. then twice. she still looks confused, and some people’s smiles are starting to fade)
Lark: “Who….are you guys?”
(everyone stops dead, and they all kind of look at one another in alarm)
Ashley: “We’re your friends.”
Lark: *puts a hand to her head* “You are? I…I don’t remember…”
Rufus: “She has amnesia??”
Reeve: *hopefully* “Do you know your own name?”
Lark: *thinks for a moment* “I….no…I…can’t remember…”
Zell: “Oh man! It’s just like the Muppets Take Manhattan!”
Everyone: *gives him a weird look*
Zell: *blinks* “What? Kermit got amnesia in that movie.”
Seifer: “Chicken-wuss! Now is NOT the time!”
Sephiroth: “Your name is Lark.”
Shell: “No! Her name is Lauren, you ass! Don’t give her that name!”
Lark: *looks confused* “I have two names? What kind of messed up freak was I?”
Shell: “A scary one.” *Lizzie elbows her* “Ow!”
Rufus: “Don’t you even remember me, Lark?”
Lark: *looks and him and squints* “No…”
Rufus: “I’m Rufus Shinra! Your husband!”
Sephiroth: “RUFUS!”
Rufus: *sweat drops* “Heh… Just kidding… I’m not really your husband.”
Lark: “Rufus? Um… I’m sorry, but I just don’t remember you.”
Rufus: “Me?! But Lark, we did so much stuff together!”
Lark: “Have you heard the rumors going around?”
Rufus: *sips coffee* “No…”
Lark: “Everyone is saying I got this part by sleeping with you!”
Rufus: “You would have gotten an even better part if you were!”
Lark: “See! That’s what I keep saying!” *stomps off*
Rufus: “You can’t tell me you remember none of it!!”
Lark: “I’m sorry…”
Reno: “What about me, Lark? Don’t you remember good ol’ Reno? We had some crazy times together!”
Reno: “Nonsense! She doesn’t like him! He must have cast confuse on her or something! I’m telling you she would never do that!”
Lark: *coming out of the room* “Never do what?”
Reno: *whirls around, sweat drops and an innocent grin* “Be the President of her own fan club. I mean, how stuck up would that be?”
Lark: *hands on hips* “What are you doing?”
Reno: “Why forming your fan club of course!”
Lark: *raises eyebrow* “You expect me to believe that?”
Reno: “What’s not to believe?” *turns to the others* “Right guys!”
Rufus, Irvine and Zell: “Right!”
Rufus: “Yeah! Go Lark!”
Reno: *looks at her eagerly*
Lark: “No… I’m really sorry…. Reno…”
Zell: “What about me!? You gotta remember me, Lark! I’m Zell! We used to go out, remember?”
Lark: “What’s up, Zell?”
Zell: *sits next to her* “Uh….I was wondering something.”
Lark: “What?”
Zell: *quietly* “Uh………..will you…..uh….go out with me?”
Lark: “Zell, are you asking me to be your girlfriend?!”
Zell: *quieter* “Yes….”
Lark: *happily* “Sure!”
Zell: *looks up in surprise* “Yes?!”
Lark: *nods*
Zell: *jumps to his feet, fist in the air* “Whoo hoo!!”
Zell: *hopeful look*
Lark: “No… I don’t remember you at all…” *pause* “Is that a tattoo?”
Zell: *hangs head and mumbles* “Yes.”
Shell: “What about me, Lark? I’m your sister, Shell! You gotta remember me!!”
Shell: “Whatcha doin’, sis? It’s 1 A.M! Gundam Wing uncut ended a half an hour ago! The guys were all making fun it. They were mean…but funny.”
Lark: “I watched it myself. I got an idea….”
Shell: “I already told you it would be a bad idea to have the FF guys fly mobile suits. All you need to do is give Sephiroth another weapon of mass destruction and–“
Lark: “No! I was watching the baseball game before the episode, and I got an idea from *that*.”
Shell: “Oh. Did the Yankees win?”
Lark: “Of course! But don’t you wanna know my idea?”
Shell: “Not really.”
Lark: “Shell!”
Shell: “Come on! I’m Shell! I love stuff! Does it ring a bell?”
Lark: “I…have a sister…?”
Shell: “Oh man!”
(she stomps out and rude follows)
Irvine: “She’s gotta remember me.” *smiles at lark* “Come on, Lark! I know you remember Irvine, right?” *wink*
Irvine: *comes in* “Hey, Lark, I got whipped cream…” *wink*
Lark: “I love whipped cream!! I’ll lick it off anything.”
Irvine: “*Anything*?”
Lark: “I think I’ve proved that before.” *they leave*
Irvine: *looks confident*
Lark: “I’m sorry… I…I don’t remember you either… But if it’s any consolation, you *are* cute.”
Irvine: *hangs head* “Only a little.”
Zell: “You try now, Squall!”
Squall: *sigh* “Whatever.” *to lark* “Hey, Lark. I’m Squall. Remember we went out once to trick Rinoa into going back out with me?”
Squall: “All right, as your pretend boyfriend, I think I’m entitled to know who you really like.”
Lark: *blushes* “Well, I like Irvine, Rufus and Zell….” *looks away*
Squall: “Even Cloud can see that. I’m talking about who you *really* like. You wouldn’t blush if you were telling the truth.”
Lark: *defensively* “I am *not* blushing!” *blushes more* “And why are you talking so much all of the sudden? Can’t you go back to saying ‘whatever’ a lot?”
Squall: “Sephiroth said to work on my communication skills.”
Lark: “Sephiroth… Said that…?”
Squall: *jaw drops* “You like Sephiroth, don’t you.”
Lark: “No! God no! I can’t like him! He’s…. Sephiroth!”
Squall: *doesn’t look convinced*
Lark: “What! I’m telling the truth!”
Squall: *hopeful look…for him anyway*
Lark: “I’m sorry… I don’t have a clue who you are.”
Tseng: “What about me, Lark? Tseng? Your favorite Turk? Do you remember me at all?”
Lark: “Oh, are you leaving?”
Tseng: *eyes widen at the sight of her* “Uh…..no…no…” *gulp* “Oh boy.”
Lark: *flips hair over her shoulder* “What do you think?”
Tseng: “Isn’t that the lingerie I helped you shop for?”
Lark: *looks down* “Oh yeah. It is.”
Tseng: *nervously* “Yeah, I don’t know what I used to be thinking….or doing…”
Lark: “Well…whatever…you want to do…”
Tseng: “I…um…I…” *gulp* “I’m going to kiss you now.”
Lark: “Not if I do first.”
(they walk towards one another *very* slowly. tseng looks oh so very nervous, especially when lark presses up against him, and puts her hands on his shoulders. he puts his hands on her shoulders before he realizes that’s wrong and instead rests them very gently on her waist, trying to put a little distance between them)
Tseng: “Oh boy….o-okay.” *gulp*
Lark: *gulp* “Here we go….your first…straight kiss.”
(they lean towards one another and their lips touch barely and very awkwardly, both of them have their eyes squeezed shut like they’re kissing heidegger or something. then suddenly they both back away at the same time)
Lark and Tseng: “I can’t do this!” *blink* “You can’t?!”
Tseng: *tries to look hopeful*
Lark: “No… I don’t even remember you…”
Tseng: *face falls*
Zidane: “What about me, Lark?? You gotta remember Zidane! I’m too much of a stud to forget!”
Lark: “So, Zidane, what do you think of everyone?”
Zidane: “I don’t know. They’re pretty mean. Especially the guys.”
Lark: “I know. But don’t worry. You’ll get used to it.” *goes up on her tiptoes and pretends to be looking at something on the other side of the room*
Zidane: *turns and looks* “What?”
Lark: *pulls his tail gently and laughs* “Hehe! Gotcha!”
Zidane: *turns back around grinning* “You know it turns me on when you do that.”
Lark: *raises eyebrows* “I know.”
Zidane: *really hopeful look*
Lark: “You are really cute… But I just don’t seem to remember you either.”
Vincent: “And me, Lark? Can you not recall Vincent?”
Lark: “Wow, Vincent, I had a really good time!”
Vincent: “As did I. You are certainly pleasant company.”
Lark: “I’m glad we’re not fighting.”
(they turn and face one another on the porch)
Vincent: “It is silly for us not to be friends. Clearly, we have much in common. We should not let the fact that we both love the same man get in our way.”
Lark: “Totally. I’m so glad we could come to this understanding.” *sigh* “Well, Happy *Valentine’s* Day, Vincent, and good night!”
Vincent: “Good night.”
(lark leans forward to give him a friendly little kiss on the lips, but when she backs off she barely parts their lips, vincent grabs her wrist, and they kiss one another again, and this time it’s anything but a friendly kiss and goes on for some time.)
Lark: “Mmmm…” *draws away reluctantly and then her eyes widen in shock* “Oh… Oh…”
Vincent: *clears throat* “Well, I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Lark: *breathlessly* “Yeah……”
Vincent: *neutral look*
Lark: “No…I…” *sees his hand* “Is that a claw?”
Vincent: *hangs head* “Is that the first thing everyone notices about me?”
Lark: “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to–“
Sephiroth: *grabs her hand and kneels at her side* “Lark! You HAVE to remember me! I’m Sephiroth! I’m in love with you, remember? We’re almost always together! You HAVE to remember me!!”
Sephiroth: *whispers* “Lark?”
Lark: *in disbelief* “Sephiroth?” *she grins and happily yells* “SEPHIROTH!!!” *she runs over to him*
(sephiroth’s eyes widen as she comes running at him and leaps onto him, pinning him to the ground)
Lark: “Sephiroth! I found you! I’m so happy!” *hugs him tight*
Sephiroth: *murmurs* “I like this position…” *pause* “Wait… No I don’t…” *sweat drops*
Lark: *gets up a little so he’s sitting on his stomach* “Sephiroth! You baka! Why did you leave like that?! I was so upset, all I wanted to do was cry!”
Sephiroth: *breathing heavily* *looks up in surprise* “Oh? Why’s that?”
Lark: *leans over to they’re face to face and she brushes the hair away from his face* “Because… Sephy… I care about you… A lot…”
Sephiroth: *runs his fingers through her hair* “Lark…”
Lark: “So why? Why did you leave? Why did you come here to depress yourself with all this bad stuff?”
Sephiroth: *shakes his head* “I can’t even explain it.” *sighs*
Lark: *frowns* “I just think you don’t wanna talk about it.”
Sephiroth: “Maybe I don’t.”
Lark: *still frowning* *she gets to her feet* “Now that I’ve sent out a huge search party and have finally found you, I hope you’ll come back.”
Sephiroth: “If you want me to.” *gets up*
Lark: “I *need* you too.” *looks at him*
Sephiroth: *meets her eyes* “Then I will.”
Lark: *tears in her eyes* “Don’t ever leave again!” *runs and hugs him tight, crying into him*
Sephiroth: *looks at her with tears waiting in his eyes*
Lark: “I’m sorry. I don’t remember any of you.” *looks away*
(sephiroth bends his head and starts to cry into her hand. vincent pats him reassuringly on the back)
Ashley: “Come on, Lark! Don’t you remember Gundam Wing?”
Lark: “No…”
Katie: “What about Star Wars?”
Lark: “What’s…that…?”
Lizzie: “The Scarlet Pimpernel?? Come you–you must remember Douglas Sills?”
Lark: “Douglas…who?”
Lizzie: *gasp*
Noelle: “What about yaoi, Lark? You HAVE to remember what that is!!”
Lark: *uncertainly* “…Yaoi…? …Is that some kind of foreign word?”
Everyone: *gasp*
Noelle: “This is serious.”
Seifer: “She really doesn’t remember anything at all.”
Reeve: “I wouldn’t worry *too* much. Most cases of amnesia are temporary, and if we keep reminding her of her old life, she’s bound to remember eventually.”
Sephiroth: *looks up* “How long is eventually?”
Reeve: *sweat drops* “Um….you can never really be sure…”
Barret: “Damn, yo! That ain’t no good!”
Cid: “$#@%#%^$&%^*^(*^#$!”
Sephiroth: “Cid’s right! How do we know you’re right anyway?”
Reeve: *backs up* “Uh… Um…”
Lark: *tugs at sephiroth’s hand* “Sephy-sama, don’t fight with him.”
(everyone turns and looks at her in surprise)
Sephiroth: *eagerly* “What did you call me??”
Lark: *looks dazed* “I… I don’t know… It just came out of my mouth.”
Sephiroth: “You called me Sephy-sama! There’s hope!”
Lark: “What does that…even mean…?”
Zidane: “You’re basically calling him ‘King Sephiroth’.”
Lark: *blinks* “Boy… I must think pretty highly of him then.”
Sephiroth: “There’s not many people who don’t.”
Rufus: “Yes there are.”
Sephiroth: “Shut up, Rufus.” *to lark* “Listen, Lark. You have a website, and it’s about a series of video games called ‘Final Fantasy’ and we’re in something right now called the ramble room, where we all hang out and seem to have crazy adventures once in awhile.”
Noelle: “Once in awhile?”
Sephiroth: “Okay, a lot. And today is the one year anniversary when we started hanging out in here! You had this place built, Lark! Don’t you remember?”
Lark: “The ramble room? What kind of uncreative name is that?”
Squall: “And it took you long enough to think of that name to begin with.”
Sephiroth: “You don’t remember the ramble chicks either? Or even the losers?”
Lark: “No… Not at all…”
Noelle: “There’s a surprise.”
Sephiroth: *sigh* “There must be some way…”
Vincent: “Perhaps if we gather more familiar faces….?”
Sephiroth: *eyes light up* “Great idea, Vincent!” *turns to the ramble girls* “You guy–go get the Gundam Wing jerks.”
Ashley: *shrugs* “All right.”
(they turn and leave)
Sephiroth: *to irvine* “Go get your brothers.”
Irvine: “You got it, partner! Come on, Reno.”
(they leave)
Sephiroth: “And the rest of you go get Twilight! And the FF6 jerks! And anyone else you think she might remember!”
(everyone nods and runs out, but before reeve can leave, sephiroth grabs him by the wrist)
Sephiroth: “Not you, Reeve. You stay here.”
Reeve: “Don’t you want to stay with her?”
Sephiroth: “Of course I do. But no one knows Lark better than I do. So if I stay here, I’ll only get frustrated.”
Reeve: *blinks* “Are you thinking logically for once?”
Sephiroth: “Shut up. You stay here…” *pushes him back in the chair* “And I’m going to go find some people.” *looks at lark* “I love you, Lark.” *leans over and kisses her forehead before leaving*
Lark: *blinks* “Wow… I…feel really popular.”
Reeve: “You should.”
Lark: *looks at him* “I feel bad for not remembering.”
Reeve: “Don’t worry about.”
Lark: “Maybe if you tell me some stuff, I might remember.”
Reeve: “Okay…”
Lark: “Hi, Reeve. Hi, Tsengy!”
Tseng: “Hi, Lark. How come you got the good job? Er…I mean…um…I meant…”
Lark: *laughs* “Yeah, I lucked out, huh? This is the best job ever!”
Reeve: “I got stuck with Cait Sith! All he did was insult me!”
Lark: “But Reeve, you control Cait Sith.”
Reeve: *hangs head* “I know.”
Tseng: “He put me in the Temple of the Ancients! The Temple of the Ancients, Lark!”
Lark: “Aw! Poor Tsengy! Well, as a reward for your suffering, I’m going let you guys each get something for free from my store! It’s on me.”
Tseng: “Why would we–“
Sephiroth: “Don’t try to hide it.”
Tseng: *shrugs* “All right.” *goes to look around*
———
Reeve: “Lark, you know bigamy is illegal, right?”
Lark: *sigh* “I know, I know.”
Sephiroth: “Well she won’t have any problems after she annuls her marriage with Vincent and is only married to me.”
Lark: *blinks* “Excuse me?”
Sephiroth: “Well, *I* don’t want an annulment.”
Vincent: “Angel…”
Lark: “I don’t think we discussed this…”
Sephiroth: “What’s there to discuss? You’re mine now. *Mine*.”
Vincent: “And mine.”
Sephiroth: “Shut up, Vincent.”
Lark: *crosses arms* “Well you know what, you’re both *mine*, which means you’re not each others. That means you two can’t touch one another.” *pause* “….although I’ll probably allow that…” *pause* “No, actually, I’m gonna have to encourage that.” *pause* “Okay, forget that all together!” *throws hands in the air* “What’s important here, is that…that….” *pause* “I forgot what I was gonna say.” *pouts*
——–
Twilight: “Next is another pathetic loser that works for Shinra.”
Tseng: *pokes lark* “It’s Reeve. You gonna bid on Reeve, Lark? Please? If you won’t, Scarlet will, and no one wants that to happen.”
Lark: “Relax, Tseng. I’ve got it covered.”
Twilight: “It’s Reeve!”
(reeve comes out looking really embarrassed)
Twilight: “You’re pathetic.”
Reeve: “Ooh…” *hangs head*
Tseng: *dreamy sigh* “Reeve’s so hot…”
Twilight: “Let’s start the bidding at 20 gil.”
Scarlet: “20 gil!”
Reeve: *lots of sweat drops*
Lark: “100 gil.”
Tseng: *happily hugging lark’s arm* “I love you, Lark.”
Scarlet: “500 gil.”
Tseng: *turning to glare at scarlet* “That bitch is trying to steal my man! Bid, Lark! Bid!”
Lark: “1,000 gil.”
Tseng: *hugs lark* “I love you, Lark.”
Lark: “I know, Tsengy.”
Scarlet: “1,500.”
Lark: *growls* “5,000!!”
Scarlet: “Eh, Reeve’s not worth that much.”
Tseng: “For your information, he’s worth *5* times that!”
Twilight: “The slut gave up, so looks like the loser goes to Lark for 5,000 gil!”
Reeve: *wipes his brow* “That was close. Thanks, Lark.”
Lark: “Don’t mention it, babe.”
Tseng: “Reeve! You’re safe!” *hugs reeve*
——–
Reeve: “….I know… I know he’s dead.”
Lark: *looks at him* “Reeve…”
Reeve: *wiping at his tears* “I’m…I’m such a fool I… I never told him………………. I never told him that I loved him.”
Lark: *frowns* “Oh, Reeve….”
———
Reeve: “Oh, Lark. There you are. Everyone is looking for you and Sephiroth. Have you seen him?”
(lark grabs both their wrists and drags them into the tv room and locks the door)
Tseng: “Um… Is there some reason you’re doing this?”
Lark: *turns to them* “Look, I have to tell *someone* before I die. And I’m telling both of you because I trust both of you not to breathe a word, and I know if I don’t tell the other, he’ll find out anyway.”
Reeve: “What is it? Is something wrong?”
Lark: “Fine. I’ll admit it. I like Sephiroth, okay? I think I’m in love with him! But you can’t tell anyone! Not a soul! He doesn’t like me back, and if he found out, it would just be weird between us. Okay? Promise you won’t tell?”
Tseng: *blinks* “I promise.”
Reeve: “Me too.”
Lark: *sigh of relief* “Good. That was good to get off my chest.” *leaves*
———
Rufus: “Ooh! Look! There’s a maze on the placemat! Reeve, give me a pen.”
Reeve: *digs one out of his pocket* “Here you are, sir.”
Rufus: “All right! Watch how fast I can do this maze.”
Seifer: “After this, we’re going to Fantasyland.”
Ashley: “And maybe *then* do you think you could stop whining, bitching or complaining for five minutes?”
Seifer: *whines* “I am not!”
Reno: “….I want a beer….” *twitch* “But I can’t have one…”
Noelle: “What’t the matter with you, Reno?”
Reno: *twitch* “Nothing.”
Sephiroth: “I call not going on any rides with Rufus for the rest of the trip!”
Rufus: *concentrating hard on the maze, looks up* “Huh? Hey!”
Lark: “Okay, no fighting. Can’t we have a nice, peaceful lunch?”
Squall: “Whatever.”
———
Lark: “Reeve?”
Reeve: *looks up wiping away tears* “Oh, hi.”
Lark: “What’s wrong?”
Reeve: “Nothing.”
Lark: “Nothing? You’re crying.”
Reeve: *hangs head* “I’m a fool.”
Lark: “What do you mean?”
Reeve: “If I’m so smart, why can’t I tell the person I’m going to spend the rest of my *life* with what’s bothering me?”
Lark: *quietly* “….I don’t know, Reeve. Only you know that answer.”
Reeve: “……..I don’t want him to know how weak I feel….. ….How weak I *am*.”
Lark: “You’re not weak, Reeve. You stood up to Heidegger and Scarlet–you stood up to Shinra when no one else could.”
Reeve: *shakes head* “That’s not the same. I….I can’t fight back. I just can’t.”
———
Lark: *shakes her head slowly* “I… I don’t remember any of that…” *blinks* “But I sure seem to hang out with you a lot.”
Reeve: “Well, those are the things that are in *my* memory. Other people remember other things. I’m sure there’s a lot about those same events that deep down you remember, that I don’t know about.”
Lark: *blinks* “Yeah… I guess so… I…I just wish I could remember. I really feel like I love all these people around me.”
Reeve: “You do. Maybe not all the time, but you do.”
Lark: “How… How did I get here to begin with? How did we all meet?”
Reeve: “That’s a story only you know all of.”
Lark: *frowns* “…It figures.” *sigh* “All of these people seem to think so highly of me, and yet I feel so empty because I can’t remember.”
Reeve: “Why don’t you rest? I think this has all been a little overwhelming on you.”
Lark: “I do feel a little tired…”
(she yawns and settles back on the pillows. reeve brushes the hair off her face and kisses her forehead)
Lark: “Thank you… Whoever you are…”
Reeve: *small smile* “You’re welcome, Lark.”
…………………………………………………………………………………………….
(and lark falls asleep, and begins to dream. ~~~~~~~~~~~~ and we’re in a place we don’t recognize. all the ramble girls are standing around a playstation, looking at it in disbelief)
Noelle: “You’re telling *me* that this thing has the power to make us go *inside* a Playstation game, just like your tv remote has the power to make us go inside the world of Gundam Wing?”
Ashley: “Yup. I’ve been in Vagrant Story many, *many* times.” *grin*
Lizzie: “Where do you get this f***ed up merchandise?”
Shell: “Knowing her, it fell off the back of a truck.”
Ashley: “That’s you, remember?”
Shell: “Hey!”
Katie: “Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s try it out!”
Lark: “Yeah! Let’s go into the world of FF8!! I love Irvine!”
Everyone: “Who *doesn’t* love Irvine?”
Ashley: “Okay, all we have to do is push this button…and…” *she pushes it*
(all the girls disappear and in a second, they wake up and look around. and they all seem to be there, except for a certain someone…)
Noelle: “Wow! We really made it!” *points at the garden* “It’s the Garden!!”
Shell: “Whoop dee do.” *checks watch* “Express is having a sale today. And they like never have sales. So can we leave soon?”
Lizzie: “Come on, Shell, this is pretty cool.”
Katie: “Where’s Lark?”
(the girls look around, but she’s nowhere)
Ashley: “Uh oh. She must have gotten trapped into another game.” *eyes narrow* “And it had better not be Vagrant Story. Ashley is MINE!”
Katie: “Will she be able to get out?”
Ashley: “She’ll figure it out. She’s not dumb.”
Shell: *mutters* “That can be debated.”
Noelle: *points* “OMG! It’s Squall!! And a bunch of other people!!”
(all the girls turn to look at where she points. there squall, seifer, rinoa, selphie, quistis, zell, irvine and nida have all gathered)
Nida: *jumping up and down* “Who wants to watch me drive the Garden again?! I did a really good job, didn’t I, Squall?”
Squall: “Whatever.”
Rinoa: “Shut up, Nida.”
Nida: “Shut up! You’re not even a SeeD!”
Selphie: “Tee-hee! Let’s go to the training center and brush up on our skills!”
Quistis: “I can’t. The Trepes are in there right now looking for me. And every time I go in there, stuff seems to disappear.” *shifty eyes*
Seifer: “Where the hell are Rajin and Fujin? I wanted to go fishing again!”
Zell: “Can I come?”
Seifer: “Only cool people are allowed, chicken-wuss.”
Zell: “Hey!” *flips out*
(the girls come over tentatively, waiting to be noticed)
Irvine: *spots them* “Hey! Hot chicks!” *saunters over and tips hat* “Howdy, there. I’m Irvine Kinneas. And who might you fine cowgirls be?”
(the girls exchange amazed looks, thinking, ‘he’s really talking to me’, all except shell anyway, who couldn’t be more bored. then they all pounce on irvine and he falls back onto the grass)
Irvine: “Whoa! I may be amazin’, ladies! But I can only do one at a time! …Maybe two…”
(the other ff8 characters come over and look from the pile on the ground to shell and back)
Rinoa: “What the…”
Shell: “Hi. I’m Shell, and on the ground attacking Irvine is Noelle, Ashley, Lizzie and Katie. We just came into your game from the outside to kill some time cause Ashley’s boring.”
FF8 characters: *blink*
Quistis: “The…outside?”
Shell: “Yeah. I’ve been playing your game on and off for like four months now. My sister Lark has like a website dedicated to you guys. It’s all she talks about. It’s really boring.”
Zell: “Cool!” *looks around* “Where’s she?”
Shell: *shrugs* “Beats me. I think she got sucked into another game.”
Squall: “Whatever.”
Shell: *points to squall* “I made you name your ring Zell!” *giggles*
Zell: “What???”
Squall: “Whatever.”
(irvine finally manages to pry the girls off him, and they straighten up and look at the ff8 characters)
Katie: “Wow…”
Lizzie: “This is *so* cool.”
Nida: “I drive the Garden!”
Squall: “Shut the hell up, Nida.”
Shell: “My sister hates your guts, Nida.”
Nida: “Why?? I drive the Garden! And someday I’ll take over this whole place!” *claps a hand over his mouth* “Oops. I wasn’t supposed to say that until I gave Headmaster Cid the poison…”
Noelle: “It’s so awesome to be talking to you guys!”
Irvine: “Likewise.” *grin* “But there are other things I’d like to do as well.” *wink*
Selphie: “Irvine!”
Rinoa: “Welcome to our world!”
Ashley: “Shut up, crackwhore.”
Rinoa: *uncertainly* “What…did you call me?”
Seifer: *goes over to Ashley* “So uh…you…like…stuff?”
Ashley: *blinks* “Was that a pick up line?”
Seifer: *defensively* “No! I’m the Sorceress’ Knight! I don’t use lame pick up lines like that!”
Ashley: “I think you’re hot.”
Seifer: *grins* “Of course you do.”
Nida: “Squall, tell these people to leave. There’s no visitors allowed in Garden without a pass!”
Squall: “Go to hell, Nida.”
Nida: *pouts and goes to seifer* “Seifer! Do something! You’re the disciplinary committee!”
Seifer: *smiling at Ashley* “Go to hell, Nida.”
Nida: “I’m telling Headmaster Cid on you!” *runs off*
Zell: “So, you girls like hot dogs?”
Noelle: “Ew, get away from me! You’re so annoying!”
Zell: *flips out* “I am not!”
Shell: “I wonder if Lark is happy wherever she ended up.”
Katie: *shrugs* “I doubt it. She doesn’t have Irvine!” *grabs him around the waist*
…………………………………………………………………………………………
(meanwhile, in a completely different game, lark comes to. the area is dark, and damp and she does not feel comfortable. lark gets up, rubbing at her arms and looks around)
Lark: “Where the heck am I?” *looks around more* “Ashley? Noelle? Shell? Katie? Lizzie?” *listens but hears nothing* “Oh no… What happened? Did I end up in a different game?” *looks up and just sees the roof of a cave* “What is this place?”
(suddenly, in a sweep of black, something falls from the ceiling. lark screams and covers her face. but it’s just a person, and this person lands on the ground and stares at her, hands on hips)
??????: “Who dares to come in here and disturb me?”
Lark: *not looking, mumbles* “Holy son of Jenova.”
?????: “Yes, I know who I am. Now who are you?”
(lark’s eyes widen and bit and she drops her arms and looks to see sephiroth standing there, looking pretty annoyed. she can’t say anything for a moment, and she just gapes like an idiot. sephiroth is growing more and more annoyed)
Sephiroth: “Stupid woman! Can’t you talk?”
Lark: *stutters* “You’re… You’re… Seph-Sephiroth…”
Sephiroth: “I see you know me.” *pause* “Of course you know me. I am Sephiroth, the dark and powerful lord of the planet.”
Lark: *mutters* “I’m in FF7?” *looks around and shudders* “I must be in the Northern Cave.”
Sephiroth: “What? You don’t like my cave?”
Lark: “No. And aren’t you dead?”
Sephiroth: *crosses arms* “No. No one’s playing the game right now. When no one’s playing, we go about our lives as normal.”
Lark: “That’s…very weird.”
Sephiroth: “Who *are* you anyway?”
Lark: “I’m Lark. I run a FF website. And I was *trying* to get into FF8.”
Sephiroth: “Oh that game sucks.”
Lark: “Do you even know anything about it?”
Sephiroth: “No. But I know. I know all.”
Lark: *rolls eyes* “Yeah, okay.” *shivers* “It’s cold in here. Can you take me somewhere else?”
Sephiroth: *blinks* “You want…to be seen with me?”
Lark: *gives him a look* “Uh…yeah. Why wouldn’t I?”
Sephiroth: *quickly* “Uh…of course! Why wouldn’t you? I am the great Sephiroth! Everyone wants to be seen with me! That’s why I have to hide in this cave!”
Lark: “Yeah. Right.” *starts walking* “Let’s just go.”
Sephiroth: *hesitates a moment before offering her his hand*
Lark: *blinks and looks at him in confusion*
Sephiroth: “Well, hold onto me if you want to get out of here.”
(lark hesitates a moment, but she takes his hand, and they appear right outside of midgar)
Lark: “Wow. That was cool.”
Sephiroth: “I can do lots of amazing things.” *studies her a moment* “Where did you come from?”
Lark: “The outside. My friend Ashley has a playstation with some amazing features.” *mutters* “Mine doesn’t even have a place for gameshark.”
Sephiroth: “I see. And….are you a fan of mine?”
Lark: *shrug*
Sephiroth: “You *shrug*?”
Lark: “There were a lot of times when I wanted to slap you.”
Sephiroth: “What?!?!?! No one slaps the all mighty Sephiroth!”
Lark: “I hate that laugh you do! When you cover your mouth and hold up your hand! I mean, what the hell is that about?”
Sephiroth: “It’s a lovable quirk!”
Lark: “Yeah. Right.” *looks up at midgar* “Wow. I never thought I’d see it from this angle. I mean, in the game, Cloud looks bigger than it.”
Sephiroth: *twitch* “Don’t say that name.”
Lark: “What?”
Sephiroth: “Because. He’s an idiot, and they make *him* the ‘hero’. The moron has no idea what’s going on outside the game.”
Lark: *blinks* “Uh huh…” *looks up at midgar again* “Can you take me to the Shinra building?”
Sephiroth: “Are you *mad*?”
Lark: “No, that’s you.” *laughs*
Sephiroth: *narrows eyes*
Lark: *stops abruptly* “Okay, not funny.” *begs* “Please, Sephy? Take me? I wanna see Rufus! And Tseng! And Reeve! And Reno!”
Sephiroth: “Don’t call me Sephy. And no.”
Lark: “Why not?”
Sephiroth: “Because there’s someone who works there, that I don’t happen to like very much.”
Lark: “Who? Your father, Hojo?”
Sephiroth: *twitch* “Don’t EVER call him my father!!!!!!!”
Lark: *blinks and slinks back* “Sorry.”
Sephiroth: “Look, woman, I like to keep my distance from him. So I’m not taking you.”
Lark: “Well, if it’s any consolation, I hate him too. A *lot*.”
Sephiroth: “…..Really?”
Lark: “Oh yeah. And I hate Scarlet and Heidegger too.”
Sephiroth: “Well you should.” *pause* “At least there’s *some* sense in you.”
Lark: “I’ve more sense than you anyway. I don’t go around burning towns.”
Sephiroth: *narrows eyes* “You look like the type that goes around breaking hearts.”
Lark: “Don’t act like you know me.”
Sephiroth: *looks her over* “We shall see about that.”
Lark: *eyes narrow* “I don’t like you already. I suppose I should have been able to tell from the game that you’re a jerk!”
Sephiroth: “And I’ve been able to tell in five seconds that you’re a bitch!”
Lark: “I take that as a compliment.”
Sephiroth: “Oh, I’m sorry. Should I have said skank instead?”
(lark clenches a fist and reaches out and slaps him across the face really hard. –might i add i can slap *really* hard. trust me. i have a guy who can back me up. i leave marks and everything– sephiroth’s head snaps to the side and he grabs his cheek in surprise. lark is glaring at him with her most hurt and angry look)
Lark: “Don’t call me that! Just don’t!”
Sephiroth: *mumbles, still holding his cheek* “…Sorry.”
Lark: *sharply* “What?”
Sephiroth: *looks at her and meets her eyes* “I said I’m sorry, okay??”
Lark: *blinks in surprise* “Oh… You’re–you’re forgiven.”
(an awkward silence passes between them)
Lark: *softly* “So are we just going to stand here?”
Sephiroth: *subtlety looks her over again* “…I’m fine.”
(lark looks off into the distance and kind of squints at the hills)
Lark: “What’s that?”
(she walks towards it, and sephiroth looks confused a moment before he turns and follows. there seems to be a part of the mountain glowing a bit, and it looks transparent)
Lark: *stares in wonder* “What the hell is that?”
Sephiroth: “…I’ve never seen that before.”
(lark goes to touch it and her hand goes through. then her whole arm goes through and she breaks out in a smile)
Lark: “Wow…”
(and without another word she just steps right in there. sephiroth’s jaw drops)
Sephiroth: “What the– You stupid woman!” *he follows*
(they’re in a big place that seems to go on forever, and there’s a road, and a big space of green grass, and a big blue sky. lark looks around in wonder and sephiroth looks at her)
Lark: “This… This is some kind of… Some kind of neutral universe.”
Sephiroth: “What??”
Lark: “I think… I think this is the place where fantasy meets reality. You know, kind of like a buffer zone.”
Sephiroth: “Are you on some kind of medication I should know about?”
Lark: *smiles widely* “I could go anywhere I wanted from here. Into anything at all…”
Sephiroth: *crosses arms* “So go. I have to get back to my cave…and…uh…count the stalagmites.”
Lark: *turns back to him* “Don’t leave me.”
Sephiroth: *blinks* “What?”
Lark: “Are you deaf? I said stay here.”
Sephiroth: *snaps* “I heard you.” *pause* “I just…” *pause* “Never mind.” *he turns around and looks around* “This place looks like it’s just another… How do we get back?”
(he looks in the direction he came from, but there’s no wall or anything. just another stretch of road)
Lark: “I think I get it. This is a world all it’s own. People live here. People from…places…and they can pass through…everything.”
Sephiroth: “Oh yeah. You’re definitely high.”
Lark: “Sephiroth!” *she grabs him by the arms* “Don’t you understand what this is?”
Sephiroth: “A place with a lot of grass.” *he shakes her off as an afterthought* “And no one touches the great Sephiroth.”
Lark: “I could get to FF8 land from here! Or…uh…Gundam Wing! Or Sailor Moon! Or–” *she gasps as she spots a for sale sign and runs over to it* “Oh wow! Look! This land is for sale.”
Sephiroth: “I’ve never seen anyone get so excited about stupid things.”
Lark: *eyes light up* “I could build a place!”
Sephiroth: “Uh oh…”
Lark: *turns to him excitedly* “A complex! With lots of rooms… And I could get FF characters to come and live there, and we could all hang out in there! Wouldn’t that be awesome??”
Sephiroth: *blinks* “I’ve…never said this before, but…I’m scared of you.”
Lark: “I’m gonna do it.” *confidently* “I’m gonna buy it.”
Sephiroth: “Oh boy.”
Lark: “You know what?”
Sephiroth: “I don’t think I *want* to know.”
Lark: “You *have* to take me to the Shinra building.”
Sephiroth: “I don’t even know how to get back!”
Lark: “I’m going to ask Reeve to design a building for me!”
Sephiroth: “Have you FALLEN ON YOUR HEAD?”
Lark: “I already don’t like you. Don’t make me hate you.” *grabs his wrist and pulls him away*
(we next see them in the Shinra building, walking down a hallway. lark walks confidently, but sephiroth walks behind her a little, looking around uncertainly)
Sephiroth: “You know, for someone who needed *me* to take you here, you sure know your way around pretty well.”
Lark: “What do you take me for? I’ve played the game!”
(they come to the conference room, and lark knocks on the door, silencing all the voices inside)
?????: *exasperated* “Come in!!”
(and they do. lark stands in the doorway, sephiroth behind her. rufus stands at the far end of the conference table, surrounded by scarlet, heidegger, hojo, tseng, reno, rude and elena, all demanding his attention, or were anyway. they all stare at the door pretty blankly)
Lark: *blinks* “Well *I* wish I had a camera.”
Scarlet: *snaps* “Who are you?”
Lark: “Wish I could ask the same, but unfortunately, I know already.” *takes a step forward* “Hi, everyone, I’m Lark. I came from the outside.”
Scarlet: “How did you get past security?”
Lark: “What security?”
Turks: *look one another worriedly*
Hojo: “Son! I haven’t seen you in ages!!”
Everyone: “SEPHIROTH??”
Sephiroth: *was trying to hide behind the door* “Dammit!! I told you I didn’t want to come here, woman!”
Lark: “Oh shut up.”
Scarlet: “President Rufus, make her leave!”
Rufus: “Shut up, Scarlet.” *comes over and kisses lark’s hand* “Welcome to Shinra Inc.”
Lark: “Thanks, Rufus! You’re so cute!”
Rufus: *flicks hair back* “Oh, I know.”
Heidegger: “Gya haa haa! He’s full of himself!”
Rufus: “Shut up, Heidegger!!”
Hojo: “Son! Give your father a hug!”
Sephiroth: “Ahhhh!!!” *uses lark as a shield* “Stay away from me or I’ll use my amazing power to strike you dead!”
Scarlet: “President Rufus! We have to finish this!!!”
Rufus: *sigh of annoyance* “Fine, *Scarlet*.” *smiles at lark* “Just a minute, my dear.”
(he goes back over to the others, and they start to discuss something quietly. the turks keep turning to look at her, and hojo keeps looking at sephiroth, who’s still hiding behind lark and grabbing onto her shoulders)
Lark: *shakes him off* “Don’t touch me.”
Sephiroth: “Like I would want to.”
Lark: “You know, for someone who’s so big and powerful, you’re pretty scared of your own father.”
Sephiroth: “If he was your father, wouldn’t you be scared?”
Lark: “….Point taken.” *dreamy sigh* “Rufus is *so* hot.”
Sephiroth: *mutters* “Whatever.”
Lark: “Tseng’s really hot too.”
Sephiroth: “I wouldn’t bother trying to work your skank magic on him, woman.”
Lark: *turns to him frowning* “Why?–And don’t you dare say that about me again!”
(sephiroth rolls his eyes and whispers something in lark’s ear. her eyes get a little wider)
Lark: “Oh. I see. Now that you mention it…” *looks at tseng again then back at sephiroth* “Wait–if he doesn’t tell people, how do you know?”
Sephiroth: “Uh…that’snotimportant–Hey, Rufus! Aren’t you done yet?”
Rufus: “Yeah, I’m sick of them.” *walks away from scarlet and heidegger who frown and look annoyed* “Now, where were we, Lark?” *kisses her hand again*
Lark: *giggles* “Could you introduce me to the Turks?”
Rufus: *blinks* “Don’t you know them already?”
Lark: “Yes, but I want to be introduced anyway.”
Rufus: “Very well.” *indicates to them* “Lark, meet Reno, Rude, Elena and Tseng. Guys, meet Lark.”
Rude: “Hm.”
Tseng: “Hello.”
Elena: “Hi.”
Reno: “He~ey! What’s up, good lookin’?” *wink*
Rufus: “Hands off, Reno. I saw her first.”
Sephiroth: “Actually, *I* saw her first. –Not that I would want her.”
Rufus: “Well *duh*. We all know *your* type.”
Sephiroth: *mumbles* “That’s not what I meant.”
Lark: “Huh?”
Rufus: “Never mind. Now, what brings a beautiful girl like you to my humble company?”
Tseng: *mutters* “Oh please.”
Rufus: “Shut up, Tseng.”
Lark: “Actually, I was wondering if I could talk to Reeve.”
Rufus: *face falls* “Oh. Reeve.”
Tseng: *alert* “Reeve? What about Reeve?”
Lark: “I need to ask him something.”
Rufus: *looks around* “Where is Reeve anyway?”
Reno: “You told him he didn’t have to come cause he kept boring up the meetings.”
Rufus: “Oh right. Well he was! Speaking of missing people, where’s Palmer?”
Elena: “Maybe he locked himself in that closet again.”
Heidegger: “Gya haa haa! Idiocy!”
Rufus: “Shut up, Heidegger!”
Lark: *looks a little scared* “Uh…speaking of Reeve?”
Rufus: “Oh, right. Well… I don’t know. Where do losers go when they’re bored? Is there some kind of math club around?”
Tseng: “He probably went to the gym.”
Rufus: “He even knows we have one?”
Tseng: “I’m headed there now. I’ll go with you, Lark.”
Lark: “Okay. Thanks.”
Scarlet: “President Rufus!!! We have more to discuss!”
Heidegger: “Gya haa haa!”
Rufus: *puts a hand to his head* “Wonderful. Great.” *sigh* “Okay, fine. Tseng, take her to find Reeve.” *smiles at lark* “Don’t forget to come back and see me.”
Lark: *smile* “I won’t.”
(she follows tseng out, sephiroth following quickly)
Hojo: “Wait! Son!! I’m your father!!!”
(but they manage to escape to the gym. lark forces sephiroth to stand in the doorway and she and tseng walk inside)
Lark: “So, it must be cool to be a Turk.”
Tseng: “That’s what everyone thinks.”
Lark: “Uh… I bet it’s cool to work with Rufus then.”
Tseng: “I don’t even know what keeps me alive anymore.”
(he opens up his locker which is covered with pictures of reeve inside. he looks kind of startled and slams it shut)
Tseng: “Uh–whoa! This isn’t mine!” *sweat drops* “Heh.” *blushes* “I don’t know why Reeve has pictures of himself in his own locker! Heh.”
Lark: “Uh huh.”
Tseng: “So…what did you want to speak to Reeve about anyway? You’re not……….*interested* in him, are you?”
Lark: “Reeve? No. He’s very cute–but no. I want to ask him if he’ll draw up some plans for me.”
Tseng: “Oh. Well, he should be happy to do that, considering he has like nothing else to do.”
(then reeve comes over in a bathing suit, drying his hair with a towel)
Reeve: “Oh, hi there, Tseng.” *sees lark* “And who might this be? Your new girlfriend?”
Tseng: *quickly* “No. Uh, no, no, Reeve, this is Lark. She’s from the outside. She wanted to talk to you, so I brought her here.”
Reeve: “Oh, I see.” *shakes hands with lark* “Nice to meet you.”
Lark: “It’s great to meet you too.”
Reeve: “For a second there I thought Tseng finally found a girlfriend! You know, as good looking as he is, I’ve *never* seen him with a girl.”
Tseng: *sweat drops* “Well, you know, just waiting for the right one to come along! Heh.”
Reeve: “Let me just go to my locker and get changed, and then we can talk.”
(he goes to walk away, but tseng panics and grabs his arm)
Tseng: “Reeve–don’t change now! Talk to Lark first. She’s been waiting. Then when you’re done talking, she can leave, and then you can go to your locker, and get out of that bathing suit…” *looks him over* “…Which you really should not stay in.” *taps the locker he opened before*
Reeve: *looks confused* “But Tseng, that’s your–“
Tseng: *loudly* “Boy!! Sephiroth looks lonely by the door! I think I’ll go keep him company!”
(he pats reeve on the shoulder and goes off. lark gives reeve a weird look when he’s gone, but reeve just shrugs)
Reeve: “His stocks haven’t been doing well lately, and I think he’s a little edgy.”
Lark: “Ah. I see.”
Reeve: “So what did you want to talk about?”
Lark: “I want to have a building built for me. I’m wondering if maybe you would like to draw up some plans.”
Reeve: *eyes light up* “Sure! Just tell me what you want, and I’ll draw something right up for you.”
Lark: “Wow! Thanks, Reeve!” *hugs him* “You’re the best!”
Reeve: “So, who’s paying for this?”
Lark: *blink*
(cut to later, where lark and sephiroth are standing in the shinra lobby. lark is pacing. sephiroth is leaning against the wall, looking annoyed)
Lark: “Sephiroth, do you have any money?”
Sephiroth: “Yes, along with my vast wardrobe of varying colors.”
Lark: “Ha ha. You’re so funny. I’m serious! I mean, Reeve’s nice enough to draw something up for free cause he’s so desperate for work, but people won’t work for free, and building supplies aren’t free!”
Sephiroth: “Oh boo hoo. Guess you’ll have to cancel dorkville. I wasn’t going to hang out in there anyway.”
Lark: “Yes you *were*, and you still *are*, because I’m somehow going to get it built!”
Sephiroth: “Why don’t you just ask Rufus?”
Lark: “I thought about that… But, as much as I love him, I don’t think he’s the generous type.”
Sephiroth: “I think you could find a way to make him loosen his purse strings.”
Lark: “Huh?”
(but before sephiroth can say anymore, the doors open and a large of group people troop in. lark’s jaw drops as she sees it’s cloud, tifa, cid, barret, red, vincent and yuffie. sephiroth’s eyes get wide and he tries to hide)
Cloud: “Where…am…I? Where’s Aeris?”
Tifa: *hits herself in the head* “If I have to hear that *one* more time…”
Barret: “Yo! I hate dis here place! Let’s hurry our asses up!”
Cid: “#$%#^%$^&^%*@!”
Yuffie: “You said it, Cid! Let’s get some materia!”
Red: “Can’t I please go rest at Cosmo Canyon?” *hangs head* “They don’t spend half the day trying to figure out what I am there…”
Barret: “Yo, shu’ up, whateva! We gots work ta do!”
Cid: “#$%#%^$&%$&!!!!!!!” *points at sephiroth*
Tifa: *gasp*
Cloud: “Where’s Zack??”
Yuffie: “Ew! GrossNESS! It’s Sephiroth!”
Sephiroth: “Aw, dammit.” *hangs head in defeat*
Barret: “Yo, Sephiroth! We gonna kick yo’ a–“
Lark: *steps up and speaks brightly* “Hi, you guys! Wow! It’s great to finally meet you! I’m Lark, from the outside!”
Avalanche: *blink*
Cid: “#$%^$^^%&%^*!”
Lark: “Yeah, Sephiroth brought me here. I asked him to.”
Barret: *blinks* “Yo, you understand Cid, girl?”
Lark: “Of course! I run a website about Final Fantasy!”
Sephiroth: “I bet it sucks…”
Vincent: “It is nice to meet you, Lark.”
Lark: *blushes* “Thanks…Vincent…”
Sephiroth: *steps between lark and vincent* “No need for that repetitive crap.”
Vincent: “But my ang–“
Sephiroth: *shoots vincent the nastiest look imaginable*
Vincent: *slinks back*
Lark: “It’s really nice to meet all of you.”
Cloud: “Who am I?”
Lark: *blinks*
Tifa: *pats cloud on the shoulder* “Eh heh. He’s our hero!”
Sephiroth: *snorts*
Tifa: “What brings you to hell—er…Shinra?”
Lark: “Oh, I had to ask Reeve something… And now I think I might have to ask Rufus for a favor…”
Yuffie: “Are you crazy??”
Lark: “I was just gonna ask if he would be kind enough to lend me some money.”
Barret: “Are you crazy?? He’ll charge so much interest he’ll own your ass forever!”
Cid: “#$^^%%&%^&^#$^#@%@#^$!”
Tifa: “Cid’s right. I wouldn’t trust Rufus. You can get plenty of money by going outside and fighting things.”
Lark: “I can’t fight. I don’t have a weapon, or any materia.”
Yuffie: “Join the club!”
Tifa: “You *have* materia.”
Yuffie: “Not enough of it!”
Tifa: “Whatever. Well, we would give you some money, but we just spent all of ours buying the beach condo at Costa del Sol.”
Sephiroth: “What!?!?! I was saving up for that!”
Lark: “I thought I said you didn’t have any money!”
Sephiroth: “Well obviously I lied!”
Lark: *taps foot and gives him a look* “You’re a piece of work, you know that?”
Sephiroth: *smiles* “Yes. A masterpiece.”
(before lark can tell him that’s not what she meant, rufus comes tramping down the stairs with his entourage of the turks, reeve, scarlet, heidegger, hojo and palmer)
Hojo: “Son! There you are again!”
Sephiroth: “No I’m not!” *hides behind vincent*
Hojo: “Ah. Vincent. Hello.”
Vincent: *cringes* “Hello.”
Rufus: “What’s going on here? Why are these losers in my building?”
Lark: “Who? Scarlet and Heidegger?”
Barret: “He be talkin’ ’bout us!”
Cid: “#$^%^%&^*^#$^%%^&*!”
Yuffie: “You tell ’em, Cid!”
Rufus: “Get them, Turks!”
(the turks sigh and look annoyed, except for elena, who looks on excitedly)
Elena: “Yeah! Turks rock!”
Tseng: “Elena…”
Elena: “Sorry.”
Reno: “We’ve been fighting them every day this week, and we win every time!”
Rude: “….It’s just getting sad.”
Barret: “Yo! Don’t be thinkin’ you’s all bad! Reno’s shock rod don’t do *nothin’*!”
Reno: “Hey! This thing hurts!”
(he tries to shock himself with it, but he feels nothing and looks at it in confusion.)
Reno: “What the…” *starts to bang it against the wall* “Work, damn you!”
Rufus: “Once again, *another* display I wish I had no part of…” *sees lark* “Oh! Lark! We meet again!”
(he comes over and kisses her hand)
Lark: “Rufus, you’re just the man I wanna see.”
Rufus: “Of course I am. What is it?”
Lark: “I want to borrow some money.”
(everyone stops dead and stares at her in shock)
Rufus: “Money?”
Lark: “Yeah, I got this great idea. I’m going to build a complex with a ton of rooms where we can all hang out! Reeve’s gonna draw up some plans, and it’s gonna be really cool, and all I need is some money!”
Rufus: “I don’t know if I can fund that sort of thing… We only brought in 400 billion gil the last three months.”
(lark thinks quickly and then her face lights up and she smiles seductively and runs a finger down his arm)
Lark: “Oh, come on, Rufy. I’m sure I can do *something* to repay you.”
Rufus: *grin* “Oh yeah? Then…perhaps we can work something out.” *takes lark by the arm* “We’re going to go upstairs and discuss this. The rest of you just stay here and…..whatever.”
(they start to walk off, as reno goes frantically through his pockets and comes up with a couple of gil)
Reno: *gives chase* “Wait, Lark! You can have my booze money for the day!!”
Everyone: *blinks*
Reeve: “Well… I have a feeling we’re in for some…interesting times.”
Sephiroth: “Maybe you losers are, but I wouldn’t be caught dead.”
Vincent: “It might be fun, my ang–“
(sephiroth claps a hand over his mouth before he can finish)
Sephiroth: “That’s *enough*.”
Elena: “Does…Rufus still want us to fight them?”
Rude: “No.”
Elena: “Damn!” *garden snap*
(some time later, lark leaves rufus’ office with a check for a whole lotta gil, smoothing her hair when she hears an argument from down the hall. one of the voices belongs to sephiroth, and lark furrows her brow in confusion and walks down the hall. the door is open a crack, and she peeks in to see vincent and sephiroth)
Sephiroth: “You *cannot* call me angel. Can*not*. What part of that don’t you understand? Did Hojo screw up your mind too when he gave you that damn claw?” *runs a hand through his hair* “We’re *over*. This isn’t about what you want, it’s about what *I* want.”
Vincent: “But… I really do love you, …Sephiroth.”
(sephiroth clenches his fist and then grabs vincent’s face in his hands. vincent looks a little scared for a moment, but relaxes as sephiroth leans in to kiss him. then as they part…)
Sephiroth: *whispers* “Keep it a secret, my Vincent, and I will show you my love as I have in the past.”
(as they kiss again, lark’s eyes widen, and she turns away so she won’t be seen, looking a little startled. then reeve comes running down the hallway, waving a paper)
Reeve: “I did it! It’s done!”
Lark: *blink* “That was quick.”
Reeve: “I lead a boring life.” *hands it to her*
Lark: *looks it over* “Wow, Reeve! This is perfect!” *she kisses reeve and goes off happily*
Reeve: *blinks and smiles a little*
(later on…lark is standing in the back of rufus’ office, leaning against the wall with tseng, as rufus sits at his desk going over the numbers for the ramble room project. she then turns to tseng and they start to talk quietly)
Lark: “Hey, Tseng… What do you know about Sephiroth’s….love life?”
Tseng: *looks nervous* “Uh…nothing.”
Lark: “*Really*?”
Tseng: “………” *chin trembles* “Well what do you expect?? I was young, and he was really hot, and–“
Lark: *interrupts* “Whoa–wait a second.” *blinks* “You and Sephiroth??”
Tseng: “Uh….no. I never did anything with him.” *sweat drops*
Lark: “Actually… I was wondering about Vincent.”
Tseng: “Oh right, *Vincent*. Yes, he’s in love with Sephiroth.”
Lark: “I see… And does Sephiroth love him?”
(before tseng can answer, rufus looks up from his desk)
Rufus: “Okay, Lark, I set up everything for you. Construction on the ramble room will start tomorrow and be done tomorrow.”
Lark: *blink* “Isn’t that impossible?”
Rufus: *grins* “Not with my money.”
Lark: “Thanks, Rufus!” *runs over and hugs and kisses him* “Tomorrow we’ll have a big opening party! And you all have to come! Right now I better go to FF8 land and round up my friends!”
Rufus: *pouts* “Are you sure you have to go?”
Lark: “Yes, Rufy. I’m sorry. But I’ll see you tomorrow.” *running out* “Bye, Tseng!”
Tseng: “Bye, Lark.”
(lark leaves, and she goes back into the crossover world and ends up right where she wants–in the world of ff8. there she bumps smack into someone and falls to the ground)
?????: “Ow!!”
Lark: *rubs her head* “Ow…” *sees who she hit* “Ack! Nida!”
Nida: *blink* “Who are you?”
Lark: *grimaces* “I’m Lark.”
Nida: “You’re that girl Shell’s sister??” *pause* “The one that hates me?”
Lark: *grins* “Yeah! Is my sister still here?”
Nida: “She’s hanging out in the courtyard with the rest of the rejected jerks. Why do you hate me? I drive the Garden! I could show you how it works!”
Lark: “Whatever, loser.”
(she brushes past nida and goes inside. since she’s played ff8 so many times, she knows where she’s going and goes into the courtyard. she spots her pals and the ff8 characters standing in a group)
Lark: “Hey you guys!” *runs over*
Soon-to-be-ramble girls: “Lark!”
Noelle: “It’s *so* cool here!”
Ashley: “Where were you?”
Katie: “Yeah! You missed Seifer beating up Nida!”
Seifer: “I can do it again!”
Lizzie: “So where were you?”
Lark: “It’s a long story, but I was in FF7 land! And I met Sephiroth–“
Katie and Lizzie: *eyes light up* “SEPHRIOTH!?!?!?!”
Lark: “Don’t get excited. He’s a big jerk. Definitely not boyfriend material. Anyway, I met everyone! And they’re all really nice, except for the obvious jerks like Scarlet and stuff. But I found this place that’s a dimension between reality and fantasy, and I’m going to build a place there with Rufus’ money and Reeve designed it, and all the FF characters from 7 and 8 can hang out there with us! Cool, huh?”
Shell: “….Just when I thought things couldn’t get any worse….”
Ashley: “Cool!”
Noelle: “Yeah!”
Lark: *looks at the ff characters* “Oh, hi you guys! I’m Lark.”
Irvine: “I’ve heard quite a bit about ya.” *tips hat*
Lark: *dreamy sigh* “Hehe…Irvine.”
Zell: “Hi, Lark! I’m Zell!”
Lark: *giggles* “I know, Zell. Nice to meet you.”
Nida’s voice: *coming from the entrance* “Squall! Your father’s here! And he brought his dorky friends!!”
Laugna: *runs in followed by kiros and ward* “Hey, hey! I’m President of Esthar!”
Kiros: “….Ward says you’re an idiot.”
Lizzie: *mumbles* “…I didn’t think Laguna was so cute.”
Laguna: “Hey, Squall! Who are your new friends?”
Lark: *grins* “You know, this is gonna be great.”
Shell: “No. No it’s not.”
(the next day, the girls stand before the completed ramble room, which is sparkling clean with…uh…newness. lark looks quite pleased with herself)
Lark: “Now you guys have to claim your rooms, and when the FF characters get here, we’ll introduce them to one another, and have a big party!”
Girls: “Whoo hoo!” *they run inside*
(lark’s about to follow when she sees a lone finger walking towards her. she stops and looks and sees it’s sephiroth. she stops and puts a hand on her hip, giving him a look)
Sephiroth: “I’m mad at you.”
Lark: “Mad at me? Why?” *slinks back* “You’re not going to kill me, are you?”
Sephiroth: “No, you stupid woman! You just left me yesterday!”
Lark: “I was coming back! What did you want, a good-bye kiss?”
Sephiroth: “…..No! But you should have said something. I helped you find this stupid place to begin with.”
Lark: “….Well I’m sorry. I didn’t know I meant anything to you.”
Sephiroth: “You don’t.”
Lark: “….Well are you going to hang in here with everyone, or are you going to be a big jerk about it?”
Sephiroth: “I’m not a jerk! And what makes you think I’m going to hang out with you losers?”
Lark: “The fact that you don’t want to be left out.”
Sephiroth: “…. …. ….Well, perhaps I will hang around, just so everyone knows that I’m better than them. Besides, I can also double as a security guard.”
Lark: *smiles* “I have a feeling we’ll get along pretty well.”
Sephiroth: “We’ll see about that.”
(lark sticks out her hand to shake, and sephiroth looks at her strangely for a moment before he reaches out and shakes her hand)
Lark: “I still think you’re a jerk.”
Sephiroth: “I still think you’re an idiot.”
(they kind of smile at one another. then awhile later, all the ff characters, even the losers are gathered around. all the ramble girls and sephiroth stand on the porch. lark has a megaphone and is standing on a chair)
Lark: “Hey everyone, and welcome to…the…uh…room. It doesn’t have a name yet.” *sweat drops* “Anyway, Reeve drew up the plans, and it’s big enough for you all to have your own room. And thanks to Rufus Shinra, I was able to afford this.”
Rufus: “I know. I’m great.”
Lark: “Now…since you all don’t know each other…we’re going to get that over with. And then you can all pick out your rooms. But…uh…we can’t actually use the main room yet, because the paint is still drying. So we’ll worry about that tomorrow. In the meantime, introductions!”
(and she goes through and introduces all the FF characters, except for the losers, who she conveniently skips over.)
Lark: “And finally—Scarlet, Heidegger, Hojo and Nida!”
Nida: *eyes brighten* “I thought you’d forgotten me! Not that you could have forgotten someone so great!”
Lark: “Get lost!”
Losers: *blink*
Scarlet: “What??”
Lark: “I hate all of you. You’re not hanging out with us. Go away.”
Heidegger: “Gya haa haa! This sucks!”
Hojo: “But…son! Surely you won’t let your own father be cast away like this!”
Sephiroth: *twitch* “You’re not my dad.”
Scarlet: “Fine! We’ll have our own fun!”
Hojo: “Yes! We will build our own room!”
Heidegger: “Gya haa haa! Fun times for all!”
Nida: *eyes brighten* “Can I come?”
Scarlet: “I don’t know…you look like a jerk.”
Nida: “And you look like a whore, skank, but I still want to come!”
Hojo: “Let him come. The more on our side the better.”
Heidegger: “Gya haa haa! I’m hungry!”
Nida: “Let’s go! And the next time any of you want a ride on the Garden, you’re not getting one!”
(they stomp off and no one cares)
Lark: “I’ll give you a few minutes to mingle, and then I’ll let you in. I just have to check on something.”
(she goes inside. and then the ff8 characters stare at the ff7 characters not too happily)
Noelle: “Uh oh.”
Ashley: “This doesn’t look good.”
Lizzie: “Maybe we should give them a hand…”
Katie: “Yeah, mix them up a little.”
Shell: “Whatever.”
Noelle: “Come on!”
(so the ramble girls go among them. Noelle grabs irvine by the wrist and drags him over to reno)
Noelle: *smiles at reno* “Hi, sexy. I’m Noelle.”
Reno: *looks her over* “Hi, sexy yourself. I’m Reno.”
Noelle: “I know. Reno, meet Irvine. I think you two have a lot in common.”
Reno: *looks at irvine* “You like chicks and booze?”
Irvine: *excitedly* “Do I?!”
Reno: “All right!” *they high five*
Noelle: *smile* “I’ve done my part.”
Ashley: *drags rufus over to zell* “Rufus, meet Zell.”
Zell: “Hey! You’re blonde like me!”
Rufus: *puts a hand to his head* “Oh god.”
Tseng: “Your building is really nice, Reeve.”
Reeve: “Thanks, Tseng. Do you think Lark would mind if I brought my girlfriend too?”
Tseng: *frowns* “No… I don’t think *she* would mind…”
Elena: *runs over and grabs tseng around the waist* “Tseng! This is so cool!”
Tseng: *sigh* “Elena…”
Elena: *releases him* “…Sorry.”
(shell has taken out her compact and is putting some lipstick on when she drops the tube by accident)
Shell: “Dod dernit!”
(someone tall picks it up and wordlessly holds it out to her. shell looks at the hand and then at the face. it’s rude)
Shell: “Thanks.”
Rude: *peers over his sunglasses at her* “I’m Rude.”
Shell: “You’re bald.”
Rude: “I know.”
Shell: “Do you shave that or what?”
Rude: “I shave it.”
Shell: “Oh. That’s…cool. I’m Shell.”
Rude: “I know.”
Shell: “So tell me, Rude, you’re a Turk, how much money do you make a year? Let’s say, before taxes.”
(cut to the window of what will someday be the tv room, where lark is peeking through the window at the crowd with a smile. then she turns around really fast and jumps as someone puts a hand on her shoulder. it’s sephiroth)
Lark: “God! You scared me.”
Sephiroth: “Watching the parade of idiots?”
Lark: “Why aren’t you among them?”
Sephiroth: “Ha ha. Very funny.”
Lark: *turns back out the window* “You know, a year ago I barely knew what Final Fantasy was. Now…look.”
Sephiroth: “Don’t get sentimental on me.”
Lark: “I hope a year from now we’re still here.”
Sephiroth: *looks her over and mumbles half heartedly* “I hope not.”
(and then lark wakes up, and sees reeve sitting besides her, holding her hand. he looks at her expectantly as she wakes up)
Reeve: “Lark…?”
Lark: “Reeve… How long have I been asleep?”
Reeve: “…I never told you my name.”
Lark: “Huh?”
Reeve: “I never told you my name. You said Reeve.”
Lark: “I did… Didn’t I…”
Reeve: “Has your memory returned?”
Lark: *tries to think* “I remember…some things…”
Reeve: “I think we have something that might jog it.” *calls* “Come on in, guys!”
(and in parades a whole huge bunch of people. every ff character that has ever been in a ramble, losers and all, as well as the the gw bunch, and any other anime characters that have appeared, irvine’s brothers, jake, bria, twilight and opal and the other star wars characters we have met. Plus, of course, all the ramble girls. the room is packed. sephiroth comes to her side)
Sephiroth: “Lark, if this doesn’t make you remember, I don’t know what will.”
Lark: *sits up* “You all look familiar…but…”
–
Sephiroth: “Help me, Lark!!”
–
Ashley: “Uh, Lark…you may want to stop the battle of the hotties behind you before….”
–
Heero: *nudges Lark* “Uh, Lark….Ashley and Duo…”
–
Selphie: “Sounds like she’s in trouble.” *sounds of feet running closer* “Lark? Is that you?”
–
Rufus: “Yeah! Go Lark!”
–
Irvine: *gets up and stretches* “Well I’m cured.” *looks at his watch* “Hey, Lark, it’s almost time for our date!”
–
Noelle: “Heh heh…..Lark hates going in the ocean.”
–
Sephiroth: *brags* “Did you see how Lark was looking at me?”
–
Reno: “Hey, Lark! Why didn’t you tell us?”
–
Lizzie: *comes in* “Hey, Lark, this came for you in the mail.” *hands over a letter and leaves*
–
Lark: *closes her eyes* “I….”
–
Sephiroth: “Lark!” *grabs his poem off the table* “Look what I wrote for you!”
–
Shell: “But you let Lark call you Sephy!”
–
Irvine: “We can’t do that! Then Lark will kill us!”
–
Sephiroth: *squeezes her hand back and looks into her eyes* “Lark….uh….I really….uh…appreciate it…”
–
Reno: “Hey, Lark! What’s up?”
–
Vincent: “….Thanks, Lark.”
–
Zell: “I’m going out with Lark!”
–
Sephiroth: “Lark!” *runs and hugs her*
–
Heero: “Lark, there you are!” *goes to hug her, but stops when he sees zell* “Who’s that?” *glares*
–
Squall: “Lark, why’s Rinoa on the other team?”
–
Lark: “….I….”
–
Shell: *looks around, confused* “Huh? Lark, wake up!” *shakes her*
–
Fairy Elena: *sobs* “You mean Princess Lark? She’s gone!”
–
Zell: “Huh?” *spins around* “Lark?” *whimpers* “Lark?”
–
Shell: “Lark, are you nuts? You *hate* Wu-fei!”
–
Lark: *giggles* “That’s cause I never told you it! My name is Lark, and no, I wouldn’t mind at all! You’re pretty cute and Roto is lousy company.”
–
Cloud: “You know, I am beginning to think you like Lark, Sephiroth.”
–
Lizzie: *going over to lark* “Hey, Lark, can I talk to you a minute?”
–
Reno: “Lark…..is there such thing as alcohol poisoning?”
–
Tseng: “Oh…..hi, Lark….”
–
Rufus: *look around* “Hey, where’s Lark?”
–
Lark: “I…” *closes her eyes tighter* “I think…”
–
Vincent: “Hmmmm…..I have a feeling Lark will again be victorious.”
–
Rufus: “Elena’s right, Lark. Being a Turk is a great job!”
–
Sephiroth: *hesitates somewhat before stroking her cheek* “Happy Halloween, Lark.”
–
Shell: “Okay, how about you, Lark?”
–
Selphie: “What’s wrong, Lark? You’re not happy!”
–
Reeve: “Good luck, Lark.”
–
Twilight: “EWWWW!!!! You’re not the real Lark!”
–
Shell: *yells from the couch* “You’re a whore, Lark!”
–
Tseng: “It’s all right, Lark.” *gives her a nice little kiss*
–
Squall: *calls* “Lark! We’re broken up!” *kisses rinoa*
–
Lark: “I think I might…”
–
Guys: *mumble* “Yes, Lark…”
–
Sephiroth: “Lark! You’re back! Let’s practice our kiss!”
–
Tseng: “Are you all right, Lark?”
–
Katie: “No Sephiroth! But why, Lark?! You don’t like him!!”
–
Rufus: “I love you, Lark.”
–
Irvine: *coming in with popcorn* “Hi, Lark.” *notices the handcuffs* “You know, I know a better place to handcuff you.” *wink*
–
Treize: “Good day, Lark. How are you?”
–
Zell: *grins* “I’ll get ’em for you, Lark!” *runs out*
–
Zidane: “Oh look! The real Lark!”
–
Vivi: “Thanks, Lark.”
–
Lark: *her eyes open* “I think I…might…”
–
Sephiroth: “Oh, Lark… I… I’m sorry…”
–
Lizzie: “Come on, Lark, we’re late for class every day because you have to fix your hair.”
–
Rufus: *innocent smile* “Oh, Lark! I didn’t see you at the party!”
–
Tseng: “Hi, Lark. How come you got the good job? Er…I mean…um…I meant…”
–
Zell: “Lark! Help me!”
–
Hojo: “Who do you love, Lark?”
–
Irvine: “So, Lark, you’re my best gal, ain’t ya?”
–
Noelle: “Don’t open it, Lark.”
–
Shell: “You’re such a skank, Lark! Don’t you own *normal* pajamas?”
–
Vincent: *enters* “The ramble room is done, Lark.”
–
Lark: “….Remember……” *she looks up and squints uncertainly*
–
Sephiroth: *sits up and pins her against the arm of the couch* “You. Just you, Lark.”
–
Reeve: “Lark, you know bigamy is illegal, right?”
–
Vincent: *laughing* “Oh no! No! Don’t—hehehe! Stop it, Lark!”
–
Ashley: “Lark, I’m still wondering why you transferred into this class. You don’t really take art classes.”
–
Sephiroth: “It’s you I want too, Lark… And I think… I think Vincent understands.”
–
Tseng: “Nothing.” *swallows nervously and puts a hand on her leg* “You look really nice, Lark.”
–
Shell: “Are you there, Lark?”
–
Rufus: “I’ll replace everything, Lark. I promise.”
–
Reno: “Hey, Lark.”
–
Lizzie: “I bet Lark left us out of something cool.”
–
Lark: *softly* “Yes….” *she glances around the room at everyone and starts to smile* “I…I remember. …..Shell, and Ashley, and Noelle and Lizzie and Katie and Reno and Rufus and Irvine and Squall and Zell and Seifer and Rude and Reeve and Tseng and Vincent and Cloud and Barret and Cid and Red and Rinoa and Quistis and Selphie and Tifa and Yuffie and Zidane and Vivi and Steiner and Sephiroth and Laguna and Kiros and Ward and….”
(she goes on, naming every single person in the room while everyone breaks into smiles)
Lark: “Yes! I remember! Oh, how could I forget?” *big smile* “I love all of you. Even the losers…in a sick….sad way.”
Heidegger: “Gya haa haa! There’s hope for us yet!”
Reeve: *pats her hand* “It’s good to have you back, Lark.”
Lark: *smiles at him* “Thanks, Reeve.” *grins and looks at everyone* “Well, what are we waiting for? It’s the ramble anniversary! Let’s PARTY!!!”
(everyone yells out happily and starts running out the door, except for the losers, and sephiroth)
Lark: *looks at the losers* “What?”
Nida: *hesitantly* “Even…us?”
Lark: *frowns for a moment but then smiles* “Yeah. Enjoy it while my good mood lasts.”
Nida: “Hooray! Thanks, Lark!” *he kisses her on the cheek and all the losers go out the door happily*
Lark: *puts a hand to her cheek in shock* “…I don’t know whether I should consider myself diseased, or what.”
(sephiroth grabs her around the waist, spins her around and then hugs her)
Sephiroth: “I *knew* you couldn’t forget me.”
Lark: “Of course not. I love you.”
Sephiroth: *kisses her* “So….shall we join the party?”
Lark: *smiles* “Yeah.”
(and they turn to walk out the door, but before they can leave, lark stops him silently by putting a hand on his arm. sephiroth turns and looks at her with a questioning look in his eye)
Lark: “We’re still here.”
Sephiroth: *smiles* “We sure are.”
THE END
The Rambles Live! 