The badlands(open)

Red XIII took a long moment to overlook the city of Midgar; it was strangely beautiful but it was also a hub of humans. He didn't like that latter part to much since they never seemed to accept him unless it was with the group that he had traveled with a few years ago and even then he hadn't seen anyone from that group save vincent. Red let out a long sigh of anger before trotting down towards the city; he had alot of ground to cover and he wasn't too fond of being out in the open when night time came around. There were still creatures around that could easily take down a lone wanderer such as himself and possibly even a well armed group. He had an easy time of making his way down the ledge that overlooked the city but there was a ton of space between where he had to go and him. So Red did the only plausible thing and decided to walk straight for the city; he wasn't in a hurry since it was only midday and he was certain he could get there in a reasonable amount of time. It wasn't until nearly dinner time that he came across his first problem; a large chasm that he hadn't come across before without a bridge stood in his way. It seemed to stretch on for a damn long time in either direction; he could of sworn that there was a bridge here from the map that he had seen at the prior city he had visited before here. He grumbled as he realized that the map must of been at least as old as he was and probrably wasn't even close to being right anymore. He huffed softly and started heading south along the chasm; which went fairly well until he hit an offshoot of the chasm that would force him to backtrack until he hit the face of the cliff he had decended not even three miles prior. With a large grumble and a huff of iritation the Lion-wolf hybrid looked up towards the sun. It was going to be dusk in not even three hours. If Red didn't get to the city soon he'd be forced to hide until dawn came; and that would not be fun especially in the badlands around Midgar. Red did the only thing he could think of and took off as fast as he could back towards the way he had come from along the chasm. It took him almost no time in all to get to where he had intially came across the chasm. He stopped briefly and pondered if he could jump it but he figured that he wouldn't be able to unless he had a considerable amount of speed; and he was doubtful he could attain it with how much space he had to run in. It was times like this that he wished that he had stayed with the group that had accepted him so openly; but that sort of thing was part of the past and not to be dawdled upon. With another grumble he took off southwards; as fast as he could. It was nearly nightfall and Red had no intention of getting caught in the dark alone; if he was caught he wasn't sure if he could fend off whatever came his way. When the sun was low in the sky and tickling the horizin did red finnally get to where the chasm no longer existed but he was so far out of the way of the beaten path that it would be ridicolous to try to travel back along the chasm. So red decided to try to cut diagonally across the craggy badlands; within almost an hour the sun was firmly imbedded into the horizan and only a little bit of it was poking out. he was suprised that it took so much time to cross such a small space but when he didn't know the area he had to take his time and not rush things otherwise he might get hurt badly. It was then that he stopped at the face of another cliff this one sheer straight down into what looked like some rather dangerous looking rock formations. Red sighed again and noted that the sun was just a sliver in the horizan; he looked behind him and noted that there was an abundance of what looked to be caves in this area. All he had to do was get to one of the higher ones and he was sure to be safe. It took him the rest of the time to find a cave that had a suitable size and he was even so lucky to find one that had a small pond in the back. The water wasn't the clearest due to the sand but he noted by the look of the water that there probrably wasn't anything wrong with it and who would take the time to poison a pond out in the middle of no where anyway? With a heartfelt sigh he lapped up a couple mouthfuls of water; grumaced and then promptly sat in a corner his tail fire keeping his area lit the best it could as darkness fell upon the plains that he had just crossed...

"Midgar..." Lar said quietly as he gazed from atop the cliffside. The great city looked so close yet so very far from where he stood, but to him, he was too close as it was. What drew him back here after so long, he wasn't sure. A part of him wanted to jump down from the cliff and run straight back to Shinra, back to SOLDIER, back to his friends.. "No.." he thought to himself. His friends were all gone from SOLDIER. All that remained was the empty shell of his old pride and glory. He was now ashamed to have ever been affiliated with Shinra. Sitting down on the edge of the cliff, Lar began day dreaming. Not of his past, but what if he had made different decisions with his life. He never talked to his parents since he snuck out to join SOLDIER. He vowed to not return home until he was a hero, and that vow was far from completed, he never made any real friends, never found someone to share his life was, never had a real home either. With his dreams almost a hollow vision, Lar had no real purpose, or so he felt. He finally sat on the edge of the cliff as the sun began to set behind the beautiful backdrop that he witnessed in front of him. Although many missions had him outside of Midgar at similar hours, Lar had never stopped to look at the beauty that surrounded his hometown. His glowing blue eyes lit up as he took in the surrounding beauty. "It's magnificent... Funny, so many missions... i never thought.." Lar told himself.

As the sun began to dissapear fully, Lar began gathering wood and kindling to start a fire. Quickly gathering all he would need, he shot a small fireball at his wooden pile, igniting it in record time. The heat from the fire relaxed him. Lar had always been comforted by fire, for it helped control the nightmares. Sleeping next to fire seemed to make them less intense, and made his headaches far less severe to almost unnoticeable. Lar pulled on his heavy black cloak over his shoulders and connected it to his armor to prevent it from slipping off, just incase anything in the wild tried to get to close and he had to defend himself, he didn't want to have to worry about tripping over himself.

"Gee Lar," he spoke to himself, as he was much accustomed too, "You're almost doing something fun... Camping.. Impressive...". He paused and looked around his makeshift campsite. "all you need now is someone to witness this..." he said chuckling to himself slightly. Stoking the fire more, Lar took out his dragoon helmet from his pack. It had been years since he ever put it on, but he kept it looking in the best condition possible. His mentor from SOLDIER had helped him modify it from his standard issue helmet, and after he was killed in the war, it was the only momento he had left of the man. He set it down beside him gently. Having it out like this, made his nights seem less lonely. A smile came over Lar's face.

Soon all that lit the sky was the shine of Midgar itself. The stars were visible slightly, but were sadly outshone by the great city. "Well Lar.. You need to decide.. What're you gunna do buddy? You came this far.. now what?" he questioned himself. He hoped the answer would fill his mouth with words, but felt that it would be best to rest and relax tonight, and let Tomorrow just be the start of a new day.

It was dark outside now; the light from the stars not giving him any light to work with; Thank goodness for his tail otherwise Red may of well been in the dark because the moon for some reason had chosen not to show itself tonight. He looked about the cave for a few moments trying to get adjusted to the area that he was in a little more. He adventured around the cave for nearly an hour before finnally giving up on it... the cave itself wasn't large thankfully otherwise Red was fairly certain he would get lost if he didn't know his way around. So he did something that he didn't really want to do... he went back outside the cave. Thankfully he couldn't hear anything lurking about nor could he smell anything either but that meant that he had to keep up his guard even more than he would normally. If something around here didn't want to be heard it wouldn't be until it was to late and red would be lying in a pool of his own blood. So Red took his time in advancing towards what he assumed to be the right way towards the city again; it was hard to miss the lights in the sky so he didn't notice the fire until he was nearly upon the damned thing. He was about two or three hundred yards away but he could tell that something like that must of been man made. So red did the only plausible thing in his mind... He crept closer trying to keep out of sight; which was hard when it was mostly wasteland. He couldn't help but sniff the air trying to get a scent or even try to see what the person looked like since he was fairly certain that there was a human close by. When his eyes failed him... his hearing did not; he could hear breathing. It wasn't the sort that was trying to hide it but it certainly was the type that was relaxed from what he could tell. With silent huff of curiosity he began to creep closer so that he could get eyes on whoever made the fire; he didn't see them until he was about 50 yards out from the fire and in danger of being seen but at least he got to see them. If they were looking in the direction he was coming from they would see him due to the flames on the back of his tail which sometimes he couldn't help but hate... but it was times like being in the cave that he was thankful for it. He continued to walk closer wondering if the human was friendly; in cases like this it was best to approach first... get close enough and then finnally speak to them. Otherwise they may just take a hostile attitude like some were prone to taking. When he was roughly ten yards away from the human Red finnally opened his mouth to speak... The words were hoarse at first but almost immediately Red's voice got back to sounding normal. It came from not speaking or making a sound in a while so one could understand why he was hoarse. His greeting was simple and it gave it away that red wasn't exactly human with his opening line.

Greetings human... I couldn't help but notice your fire....

Lar was enjoying the darkness and the glow of the fire. He was completely relaxed at this point of the evening. So relaxed that he didn't even notice the beast creep up from behind him. He wasn't surprised that a stray beast had found it's way to his camp, no, for he almost expected it. What he did not expect, however, was the words that came from this beasts mouth..

"Greetings human... I couldn't help but notice your fire...."

Lar's eyes went wide with surprise. A small smile came across his face. His body, which tensed up at first, returned to its relaxed state, and he was able to turn his full attention to the beast that stood in the dark... with a slight light coming from his tail. Lar was excited to see this creature in the light. Not many wild animals would just walk right up to him and say hello. This was very interesting indeed for him. Lar looked on at the poorly lit figure and after a slight awkward silence Lar finally realized that he hadn't responded to the creature. "Sorry if it was keeping you awake... I can put it out if it would help, but I wouldn't advise to that." Smiling and turning the tone of his voice to more comical "Not all creatures just walk up and say hello, ya know?" he chuckled slightly as he turned his body to the side of the fire exposing it to the creature. "But if you're cold.. please come closer.. I wish you no harm. My weapon is for self defense. And I would love some company." He said in the friendliest way he could to the creature. Although he was welcoming the strange beast to his campsite, he was not letting his guard down, for he still didn't know the intentions this thing had. Lar could just be the next meal on the beast's menu, and if that was the case, he would not just lie down and allow himself to be an easy meal, no, this thing would earn his dinner. But deep down Lar had a feeling that this was not the case, and Lar always tried to be as friendly to everyone he met, regardless of who they were or where they met, as in this instance it was Lar's most unusual meeting.

He smiled again at the beast, "I'm Lar.. I used to live there" he said as he pointed to the city of Midgar. "Have you ever been there?" he asked in a curious manner. "I bet you'd surprise a lot of people if you strolled right into town." Lar began to pick up his belongings around the fire so that the beast could approach comfortably and not have to worry about tripping or stepping on anything. He took His helmet and gave it a quick buff with his forearm before carefully placing it back in his bag, zipping it up. The fire was beginning to die down, so Lar took a few more pieces of wood that he had collected earlier in the day and placed them in a teepee fashion on top of the more burned up logs. "There.. that should help" he said quietly aloud, moreso to himself, but now felt less silly talking aloud since he now had someone to actually talk to.

Red walked over to the fire and waved one of his paws over it a good distance over the flames and then nodded to himself in satisfaction before turning to the human. He eyed the human curiously wondering why they hadn't gone to the city as of yet but they were probrably on the same page as he was when it came to getting stranded out here. Red made sure to see if the human had anything weaponlike within his reach before even coming within 10 feet of him; Red then would sit down on the opposite side of the fire his eyes watching the flames as he spoke back at the human in a slow and thoughtful way.

You weren't keeping me awake... I just noticed the flames from the cave that I took shelter in for the night before heading to Midgar. I'm well aware that many a creature would just rather bite your face off than actually talk to you or anything of the sort. My weapons are for hunting; and self defense as well.... I'm not worried about you since you haven't even drawn anything or made a move towards me yet in a hostile manner.

Red took a moment to gather himself before deciding to lay down on the opposite side of the flames than the human. His tail swished back and forth lazily as he decided what to say next. This human seemed more talktive than most others so he couldn't really couldn't act as distant as he would normally towards most humans or as silent. From what he could tell this human may of not socialized with other humans in a while; but that was just his guess. He spoke once again the words flowing like water from his mouth.

I've been there human however I do not like it since so many seem to treat me very differently than animals or humans. It's hard to be accepted there when everyone thinks your just a dumb dog or something of the sort; trust me. I do surprise many a folk and they seem rather reluctant to even talk to me.

Red lasped into a friendly silence with the human but he still didn't drop his guard... one could never know what one of their kind actually had upon their mind and he wasn't just about to tottally trust them the moment he met them. it was odd why this human had such a different view than others that he had met; then again it remineded him a little of cloud and tifa bless their hearts. They didn't seem to have a problem with him from the get go; sure there was a few jokes here and there... but at least they hadn't changed over the years that he knew them. If this human was anything like them he was certain that he may actually see this one again. If not multiple times; which in this society it wasn't a bad thing to have many friends.... It was bad having too many friends and not enough reasources however so red made sure that he didn't become to familiar with this human until he was sure that he could trust him.

The two males would have been out there for quite some time before they heard an odd tapping coming their way-it wasn't even trying to be stealthy, but it was hard for even Red's eyes to make out the form that was coming near them from the darkness. Their campfire had dulled their night vision-a lesson that Lars' commander should have drilled into him, but alas, keeping warm meant that one had to suffer the occasional mishap. It was even coming from upwind, so that Red couldn't get a good whiff of what it was...just that part of the tapping sounded wooden, while the rest of it sounded...like cloth? Yes, like shuffling cloth along the ground, odd as it was. Well, it could be fur…

Finally it came close enough to the fire to make out the shape-something taller than Lars, its head narrow and slender, while tapering down into a wider body. Its legs must have been quite short indeed, aside from the one that was extending from a grotesque arm that was wider than Red's torso, seeming to drag the rest of it along as it made its journey towards them…

And finally she came within more than 'outline' view. The narrow head had actually been her hat, a blue affair that had added a good foot to her height. The grotesque arm was simply a robe sleeve that draped down to where one -assumed- her knees were, simply because they couldn't be much lower than that. And they couldn't see her feet because her robe blocked them from view, actually draping down past her feet and creating a ‘flower’ effect on the ground. Somehow it didn't seem to impede her feet, because it stayed at a steady distance from the rest of her body-as if the lower portion of the robe was stiff to the point that it didn’t move. Really, the only thing they could see outside of her clothing was the hand that was holding a long wooden staff with an orb on the top of it, and a smiling face framed by blonde hair, all set off by a purple flower she was wearing on the left side. If anything, she looked like an old-timey priestess from the storybooks, aside from not having anything that overtly resembled a holy symbol. Or perhaps that was what the staff was for?

And then she spoke, and any thoughts about whether or not she was dangerous should have ceased-she looked and sounded like she was barely an adult! "I'm sorry to intrude sir, but...um. I'm not from around here. I saw your fire and heard talking, so I thought you wouldn't mind sharing it for the night! Please?" She blushed a bit, bowing to the two...well, more to Lar than to Red. "I'm Leonora, Epopt of Troia." She hesitated for another moment, but spoke up just before Red could say anything. "...Were you talking to your companion there, or did they leave?" She pointed at Red, leaving no doubt in either of their minds-she definitely thought he was nothing more than a dumb beast. And wouldn't it be fun to convince her otherwise?

Lar smiled at his new friend, but found himself feeling sympathetic for the creature. "I am sorry that not everyone is able to see the true you. I know you've only been here a few short moments, but I can see past your shape. You're no fool by any means either.", Lar said as he gave a slight smirk that was barely visible by the shadows of the fire, but was still able to be made out. Lar knew in his heart that this thing, whatever it was, dog, wolf, cat, who cared, he posed no threat to Lar. Lar felt he could use this opportunity to build on his lacking friendships, and find out more about this strange creature. "So.. I don't wish to pry, but what do I call you? You must have a name? And what exactly are you doing out here alone? It's not exactly the safest place for lone wanderers.". The fire popped and crackled in the silence of the night, only the voices of the two around the fire could be heard.

Suddenly From in the darkness, a strange tapping noise perked Lar's ears. His SOLDIER instinct took over, jumping to his feet and grabbing at his spear holding it tight, he trusted his ears to guide where the danger came from. A trick no SOLDIER commander could teach, but only that of his mentor. He was trained to use the other senses when the others would fail him. He pinpointed the direction and watched carefully as the tapping grew closer and closer. Soon a bizarre figure stood before Lar and his new companion, but Lar knew the flickering light of the fire in total darkness would very much play with any image that it illuminated. He tightened his grip on the spear and planted his feet, ready to act quickly if need be. He had it planned out in his head. He would leap, as high as he could, and come down on the monster, hopefully killing it quick before any real danger fell upon himself or the beast he shared the fire with. But before he had to react, the image became clear, and in front of him stood a woman, not much older or younger than himself, dressed in head to toe robes, including a strange looking hat. Lar had never seen clothing like this before and gathered that she must be from a different world. But why she too was wandering around in the dark alone, that was a very strange thought.

Then she spoke, introducing herself and asking to share the fire. Lar's grip on his spear lessened and his movements relaxed. Lar smiled at her and put his spear down just as she asked about where his companion was. Lar looked at his four legged companion and looked back to the young lady, "Hi, yes please come get warm by the fire... It's cold out tonight.. I'm Lar, Lar Highwind, and as for my companion, well.. this is him right here." He spoke as he gestured to Red. Lar's curiosity was to much to ignore, he had to know now why this girl was here, "What were you doing out there? You could have been in danger." He said with a polite and protective tone in his voice. Lar was always busy worrying about others, never himself. It was easier for him that way.

Red was about to answer lar when he started to hear the tapping sound; it was coming from somewhere behind him that much he could tell. So he did what any animal would naturally do... He turned around and stared in the genneral direction of the sound until he could see something. What he inntially saw was befuddling; then it was just plain strange... but to top everything off he was able to tell by the end that it was a female human... Perhaps a priest or perhasp a monk of some kind that like using staffs? He disreguarded his latter idea and instead subituted a magic user of some kind due to the funky outfit. He was about to say something when she greeted the both of them; well more lar than him because of what she said and what she did. This caused red to pause and then shake his head softly before turning about grumbling to himself so that it sounded like he was growling. He didn't like many humans like this one that just assumed more than gathered the facts. He however never got the chance to tell Lar his name but he let the two humans exchange greetings and what not before even considering saying his name. He looked towards the female human taking in her features some more; she looked innoncent enough however she had rather irriated Red with how she had spoken about him right off the bat. Even if it was by mistake he couldn't just change someone's mind that easily to thinking he was rather intelligent. However due to some fluke or whatever at that particular moment Red felt his nose twitch which was followed by a sneeze that he couldn't help but curse something fierce as he sneezed twice more.

Oh by the love of Gaia...

He grunted and then shoved his nose into the dirt which caused the fourth sneeze to evaporate into a huff that was followed by a colorful length of cursing as he tried to get the dirt he just got into his nose... Out. With a bit of a snarl he bopped his own nose with his right paw before turning towards the pair of humans his eye glimmering in the fire light. While he felt rather... irritated at this human he couldn't feign not being able to speak after cursing so much in front of her. If only he could get a second chance at it... if he didn't convince her he wouldn't try and he wouldn't let lar convince him otherwise. However he decided to play the polite wolf-lion hybrid for the moment....

There is plenty of room around the fire for three Leonora. And Lar my name is unimportant really but you may call Me Red; for obvious reasons I assure you. As for being out here lar I wanted to get to Midgar before it got dark so I could visit a friend that I had promised to see at some point this week. This wild I've known but I haven't been on this side at night before unless it was with a party of at least 5 people.

Red Let out a sigh and then put his head ontop of his paws staring at the two humans his part said and done. He really didn't know what else they could possibly share but it was magical how humans could talk about the same damn thing every damn time they met one another. Amusing really but then again that's why he sometimes watched them and didn't do anything to intervine in any way shape or form.

Lar nodded as red spoke. If he was going to go to Midgar, maybe he could accompany him to meet his friend. It had been so long since he had returned to his hometown, and not going in alone would possibly help his own ability to stand strong against his own temptations, and simply put, the company would be more than enjoyable. "Red, if I may, I'd like to accompany you to Midgar. I'd very much enjoy a trip home, but can't justify going there alone. I'd probably do something stupid, I know it... And you're just the fella to help me to prevent that.", Lar said softly as he gazed down at his once, proud to call, home. The exhaust from the reactors huffed into the night sky, which Lar seemed focused on more than anything, seemed almost hypnotic. His memories flooded his mind, mostly of the many days he spent just having fun with his coworkers around the town. But things were different now, and those days were behind him. Shin-ra was no longer his friend. He had to make new allies... friends... whatever you wanted to call them, he needed them.

He looked over to his new companion, seeing him resting, and decided to do the same. He lied flat on his back, folding his hands behind his head to keep it from resting in the dirt, and gazed up towards the sky. "Tomorrow we'll get an early start, Red. It's not too far from Midgar from where we are.". He let his body relax, and eventually his eyes grew heavy. He was not concerned with any of the wildlife out here, for he slept so lightly that the slightest noise would waken him. The fire they shared began to go dim, and soon only glowing red embers remained. All was quiet, except the hissing of the fire, and the whistling of the wind.


As if almost as quick as a blink, the quiet of the night was replaced with the many songs of the birds that filled the trees. The cool wind of the night was replaced with the warmth of the rising sun. He opened his eyes. Still dawn. Good, he hadn't overslept. He sat up and stretched, letting his eyes adjust to the new day's light. He looked over to where his friend was, and checked to see if he had awoke yet himself. "Good Morning, friend.", he said just loud enough for if he was awake he would be heard, but silent enough that if sleeping, would not be a rude awakening.

He stood up stretching his back and bending his knees to limber up. He was hungry, but figured he could wait until they had made it to Midgar. He looked around at the campsite. The glowing coals from the night before had now become nothing more than black and grey ash, not even hot to the touch, he figured, but didn't confirm. Other than that everything else was as same as they had left it the night before. He picked up his belongings, throwing his duffel bag over his shoulder, and grabbed his spear, now awaiting his companion.