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[ She gives Tifa an encouraging nod, taking in the information, because it's not like Eustace spoke much about the dogs, despite how much they may have played with them together. They always found something else to talk about... ]

I am still learning their names. Eustace hasn't told me much, but I suppose I haven't asked in depth, either, before now.

[ He's totally the type to say that, right? "You never asked"? Susato thinks so. ]

Where do you think we can find her? Rose, I mean.

[He definitely is.

She glances back at Aerona first to make sure that she's following, before she points up ahead at the flowery trees in the distance.]

Over there, I bet. She likes being around flowers, so my guess is she's taking an afternoon nap in one of the flowerbeds.

[Or she's created one for herself, most likely.]

I'm surprised Eustace hasn't told you much about them...? Taking care of them is always the first thing he does in the morning, after breakfast.

[She hardly even thinks about what she's saying as they stroll along, her mind too preoccupied with making sure Aerona is with them still.]

[ Tifa may be surprised, but his tight-lipped nature basically falls right in line with what Susato has come to expect of him. It's even self-admitted, though he has definitely opened up some. She can tell he really loves those dogs, at least; and he has even been surprisingly encouraging on other topics.

But Susato quietly smiles, bypassing the topic of Rose and the dogs entirely. ]

I see. So you do live together...

Seeing the familiarity between you two when he visits the Wild Harvest, I often wondered, but I feared it might be rude to ask. [ Even though... she like, just kind of did? ]

Huh?

[It's only then that Tifa realizes what she's said, and she immediately goes so red in the face that her cheeks could put her eyes to shame. What a blunder!!! She's supposed to be keeping it all under wraps. For what reason? Please do not ask her, but she stumbles with her words—or lack thereof—for a moment before she corrects Susato. As gently as she can with what string of words she can form in a higher pitched voice.]

Ummm...! N-no, not quite...

[They don't technically live together. Not officially. Not yet.]

We... uh, I guess you could say we're close... and that we spend a lot of time together...

Oh. Ah... [ Suddenly Susato finds her feet very interesting. She looks embarrassed, but does her best not to look down and out for long, because they've still got to find Rose. ] I'm sorry, then.

[ For misunderstanding. Her and Kazuma don't live together either, huh...?

Though on the note of Tifa spending a lot of time with Eustace, she does kind of remember something that Eustace once told her. ]

He told me once that dogs used to be afraid of him. That... he used to be less friendly and more closed off than he is now.

It's fine...!

[Her voice returns to normal, but there's still a flush of frantic red in her cheeks. Looking back, it wouldn't have been difficult to misunderstand what she said. While they don't live together, they might as well already with how much time she spends at his treehouse, and it wouldn't take a scientist to figure them out. She's sure that most people already have.

Tifa is relieved when Susato shifts the subject, though, and she cants her head slightly as they walk. She had no idea he was being so open about it, and it brings a warm, proud smile to her face.]

I'd believe it.

[She knows that he was once like that.]

Even when I first met him way back when, he didn't talk much. He looked kind of grumpy across the bar, so I whisked him away somewhere else. A pet café... Don't think I've ever seen a man do a complete turn as he did when he saw the dogs.

[ Well, hopefully Tifa isn't too relieved, but Susato isn't here to make her uncomfortable. She smiles, admiring the nostalgic look on Tifa's face as she speaks, and the pride. She doesn't know everything, but she can tell he has come a long way. ]

I didn't know we had a pet café.

[ In fact, she's almost sure they don't, but Eustace could totally open one. She's chuckling a bit at the thought, and at the idea of him doing a complete 180. ]

Was it what you would call... "love at first sight"?

[If Tifa's face could get any redder, now is the time.]

I... um, we... we don't actually have a pet café.

[She's just going to home in on that point instead for a moment while she composes herself. It is an interesting tidbit that she isn't even sure Eustace has told anyone, especially considering he has no memories of it at all. Although, him opening up a pet café isn't completely out of the realm of possibilities. Tifa's definitely floated the idea around in her head.]

It was in a different world... sort of like this one, but before we came here. ... Well, he doesn't remember it, but I do.

[It's the sad smile that crosses over her expression that helps to take some of the edge off. Talking about back then, in Camelot, is a little easier than talking about where they are now.]

I... I wouldn't call it that. I thought he was stubborn and a little too grumpy when we met.

[ Ah... Well, it's nice to have the confirmation, and to know that she hadn't missed such a thing in Reverein. She watches Tifa's reaction, noting the redness creep to her face, but then casually turns away to continue looking for Rose, as if to give Tifa the space.

That's enough of an answer for Susato, for now.

Eustace is still grumpy (perhaps less so), and probably stubborn, but so is a certain someone else. ]

. . . Kazuma . . . He was in a place like that for years. He even told me that some don't remember, but he does, too. I don't suppose it was the Realm of Stories? Or... [ What did Futaba call it? The phrase sounds a bit foreign coming from her: ] the Index?

Realm of Stories? [Tifa gives a small shake of her head.] No, nothing like that, but I've heard of it. The place we were in was called Avalon. It was just me, Eustace, and Zidane.

[Although between the tree of them, Tifa's the only who actually remembers any of it.

And she has heard that Kazuma has been elsewhere, too. That was still something tucked away in the back of her mind for later—something to talk about with him, because there are so few people around here who understand what that's like...]

It's a little strange. Having memories that others don't... I hope Kazuma's been handling it alright.

[ She's quiet as she considers the name, but Susato can't say she's heard of Avalon. As Tifa speaks about memories, all she can think about is the confusion and the turbulence that was their collective arrival, and finding out that... likewise, Kazuma's memories didn't match theirs. ]

I suppose you could say he knows both sides of the coin. I am sure it is equally strange for him, not to have memories that he should... but at least with his memories from home, he takes comfort in knowing that he will experience them eventually. I think... that is why it doesn't bother him. [ That, and he's already gotten the information most important to him. ]

He still tries to do entirely too much on his own, but I can only assume it is a difficult habit to break.

[She knows what that's like because Tifa is the exact same way... It's a terrible habit, and a difficult one to break indeed, especially when one's grown so used to it after so long. And although there's a flicker of sadness in her eyes about her own mismatched memories with Eustace or even those from home that she's experienced, it doesn't diminish the warmth in her smile.]

As long as he's got other people here to look out for him.

[She's fixing Susato with a pointed look. Tifa still isn't entirely sure what their relationship is, but she's just as perceptive as Susato has been when Eustace comes to visit.]

Looks like he does, though. So I wouldn't worry too much.

. . .

[ In a way, she was literally raised to look out for him. Only in a legal capacity, of course. She doesn't think he ever expected anything more, but it was her who came to expect more of herself—when they were planning their voyage to Great Britain, yes, but especially now, here in Reverein.

Despite this, she herself is hardly the first person who comes to mind when Tifa suggests it. Susato looks like she is somewhere far away, spacing out as Tifa stares at her knowingly. It's unclear whether Susato even heard her, but then it all seems to process at once when she notices her. ]

Huh? Oh... y, you mean... me?

[Her smile spreads a little wider before she breaks with a laugh.]

Yeah, you!

[Who else would she mean, silly!?

The way she'd spaced out like that is pretty telling on its own and given all the times she's seen them working together at the Harvest, she does have to wonder the same thing that Susato had about her and Eustace.]

He means a lot to you, and I'm sure he knows that. It probably helps... with all the other stuff going on. You two spend a lot of time together, don't you?

[She may be fishing. Just a little bit. All in good fun, though!]

[ All in good fun. She resists the urge to stare at the ground some more and meets Tifa's eyes, feeling slightly redder in the cheeks than before, and the petals on her hairpin that he'd gifted her glows faintly. She wants to reiterate that they are family, so it isn't strange for them to spend so much time together, but all that comes out is: ]

I... Old habits...I suppose... [ The words are kind of mumbled, but spoken clearly enough. It almost has a dismissive air to it, but then she clarifies: ] I always did follow him around when I was little, wanting to do everything he was doing.

But it's been...

[ Different. ]

[There's a small, fleeting ache in Tifa's heart, and for a moment, she thinks of a blond head of hair, spiky like a chocobo's, waiting for her back on Gaia. She hasn't thought about him much recently, but those times that she does find herself drifting back home, she does miss him, and it's Susato's own memories of her and Kazuma that briefly draw her back that way.

Seeing how she flusters and stumbles with her words, Tifa tips her head gently at her, and her smile shifts from curious to encouraging, but not at all pushy. If she doesn't want to say, then she doesn't need to, but—]

Been what...?

[ What, indeed? Susato is quiet. That is perhaps the question she's been trying to find the answer to all along. In the end, she really didn't want to bother Tifa with this, but she sees no reason not to be honest, either. ]

Different.

He is different... Our years apart have changed him. But I don't mean that in a bad way.

[ Except maybe she does. She can feel a wall around him lately that he has built around himself. At first, she assumed it was to keep her out, and she took it quite personally, but she's come to realize that he saw that wall of a way of protecting her.

Which makes things really hard. Why can't it just be simple?? ]

I don't even know what I mean. I just, um...

[ She kicks her feet gently in the dirt as she walks. Damn. Why couldn't she just shut up and leave it at that? ]

I love him. And... I told him I would always fight for his happy ending.

[She isn't even in the least bit surprised, and if Tifa's smile could grow any warmer, it does. She knows what that feeling is like—it's both the most uplifting and most terrifying thing to feel all wrapped up into one, and she's glad that Susato has been able to find that in someone. In Kazuma, no less, who Tifa has always held such a high opinion of.

She approves of this choice.]

See?

[Tifa's hand moves to pat her gently on her back between her shoulders. He's got someone to take care of him.]

I have a friend who's the same way. I hadn't seen him in a long time, and he was... different when I saw him again.

[Perhaps not in the same way that Susato is referring to, but it's not so different, either.]

It'll take some time, but as long as you know it's for the better, and he knows you're there for him, all it takes is a little bit of patience.

[ Maybe Tifa really does understand. Susato looks up at her, smile brightening just a little. Her eyes brim with questions about Tifa's friend, but in the end, she holds off on asking for a while longer. She lets Tifa's words sink in a bit more and allows herself to find comfort in them, taking in a breath. ]

Yes. Well, I am here now... at least. [ For what that was worth. She's been pretty good about reminding him of this, but it's nice to hear it herself. ] What a relief, to remember that.

...Thank you.

[ What else can she say? She hopes Tifa is right. There is another quiet pause, as if she is considering what she should say next. And then... ]

I managed to win something for him, you know. Yesterday, when I was playing the Smash game. But... I haven't given it to him yet.

Oh!?

[Tifa's eyes light up and she slows her pace so she can turn sideways to face Susato.]

What'd you win? Some of the prizes are really cute.

[Tifa had managed to snag herself a giant corgi to take home for Eustace... She's not sure how much he'd appreciate having the massive thing sitting around in the house, but maybe the dogs will like it?]

Hopefully you didn't have any troubles carrying it home. Some of them are also really big...

Oh, no! I, um... wasn't quite skilled enough for those... or, I suppose you could say, I haven't played enough yet. But I did see this adorable cat about the size of my palm that made me think of him.

[ Susato roughly demonstrates the size with her hands. ]

He's dressed as a samurai with a sword at his side, and a grumpy little face. [ She laughs, remembering how she had to hide it under her bed while Kazuma was staying over. ] It looks exactly like him, I assure you.

At least, I hope he thinks so.

[It certainly paints an adorable image—a grumpy cat dressed up like a samurai. Yeah, she can certainly picture it in her head that slowly shifts from animal to human, and it provokes a giddy laugh out of her.]

Is it bad that I just imagined a grumpy Kazuma with cat ears instead? [Because that's where her mind immediately went, and her eyes widen a touch.] ... Don't tell him I said that.

[That's her boss they're talking about!]

But I know he'll love it.

[Mostly because it was something that came from Susato, but it does sound pretty cute.]

I think you should surprise him with it.

[ She's totally telling him you said that.

Not really, but Susato still finds herself chuckling fondly at the image. Really, Tifa probably isn't too far off the mark, and somewhere out there, a god is listening, and waiting to turn Kazuma into that. ]

I haven't checked, but I'm sure you can get cat ears, too. [ They could be prizes at one booth or another, aren't they? ] He is already wearing the flower crown I gave him, though.

...Anyway... I think I will give to him tomorrow.

[ A pause. ]

To congratulate him, if he is crowned king. Or... to cheer him up, if he is not.

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1/3

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susato is so cute i can't handle it 😭

thank yooou ;o; ♡

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