bakerstreet | The RPG Status Effect Meme

The RPG Status Effect Meme

THE RPG STATUS EFFECT MEME

Or the “everyone in my party is a scarecrow except me” meme.

It doesn’t matter how it happened. It could have been a spell, cast by a saucy witch or a demon king! Maybe it was a misfire, or maybe you used the wrong item. Real life events can do it, too...has something shocking occurred recently? Whatever the case, you’ve got a STATUS EFFECT. Just how bad is it, and will you be able to get rid of it?

The Rules!
1. Post with your character! Include name and canon and preferences, whatever you want. Set up your scene, or leave a blank comment. It doesn’t matter. Smut is possible in this meme, so make sure to let people know if you want it or not!
2. When you tag someone else, use the Random Number Generator to pick a status effect! Or cheat and pick your own, it's all good.
2.5 You can both roll, too! Make it a train wreck.
3. ?????
4. Have fun! You should know how these meme works.

GENERIC RPG STATUS EFFECTS

1. Berserk: You’re just so mad! You’ll snap or attack the first person who comes you’re way. Truthfully, maybe they deserve it...or this is ALWAYS what happens when you’re in battle, you berserker, you.
2. Blind/Silence/Deafened: You’ve lost one of your senses. Oops. That seems to happen a lot. Is it permanent? Temporary? What are you going to do until it comes back? You might need some help getting used to it.
3. Charm: He or she is just so irresistible...funny, you didn’t think that a moment ago. But it seems like a good idea to flirt or go farther now, so why not? Or maybe you’re so in love that you’re going to attack your allies. Not cool.
4. Confused: You hurt yourself in confusion! Or you’re going to, at this rate. Someone needs to slap some sense into you and fast. As to why you’re confused, maybe it was a nasty spell...or maybe you’ve seen something you can never unseen. Just stop attacking your allies, still not cool.
5. Control: Normally, you get to use this one on the enemies...but for whatever reason, you’re now being controlled. Your attacks and abilities belong to a puppetmaster using you for their own gain. Naturally, you can attack your friends like this...or just gather intel. Either way, you’re not completely yourself. Or are you the controller?
6. Cursed: Someone cut their HP in half to do this to you, or you ran into a skull that was on fire, or you just have bad luck with ghosts. Curses can do a lot of things. They can hurt you, prevent you from doing something, make you weaker...quick! Find a priest!
7. Disabled: You’re hurt. For whatever reason, you’re so helpless that you can’t draw your weapon or go about doing what you do best. It could range from a strange spell to a significant physical injury, but the result is the same. You can’t do what you were supposed to do.
8. Doom/Gradual Petrification: You poor soul, you. You have the worst luck. Wherever you walk, you’re slowly being turned to stone...will you still be able to feel when you’re nothing more than a statue? Or maybe death is following you. Accidents and injuries happen more often, and it’s only a matter of time before you leave this world. But what’s better? Being stone, or being...gone?
9. Float: You’re as light as a bird! Heck, maybe you even have wings now. The only thing that matters is that you can fly! Flap those wings, or just zoom around like a super hero! Or maybe you just can’t touch the ground for whatever reason...at least you’re invulnerable to earth attacks?
10. Frog (Animal Transformation): It was a different type of curse. A strange spell. One moment, you’re human (or not), and the very next you’re an animal or something else. Are you a frog, waiting for that kiss? A pig, waiting to be served? Maybe you’re a mushroom...or, oops, have you been turned into a demonic midboss?
11. Invisible: No one can see you. Maybe you can’t see you. So take off those clothes and enjoy your new invisibility (or does it include your clothes and weapons?). What are you going to do, though? Finish someone off? Go for a joyride? Sneak where you’re not supposed to be?
12. Miniature: You’re small. There’s nothing more to it. You might be a foot tall, you might be four inches tall, but you’re still puny. Hopefully no one steps on you. Maybe this form has its advantages, though...?
13. Poison: This isn’t a fun one. It hurts, being poisoned. Your body is in constant pain, but you can still fight or live with this condition. Hopefully, someone will find an antidote before it’s too late (or when your HP gets to 1, maybe it will stop?).
14. Reverse: You’re sick, but taking medicine makes you sicker. Guess it’s a good time to smoke and drink, because it makes you feel a LOT better. Those medicines? They do nothing for you. A slap in the face feels great, though. What hurts, heals! What heals, hurts. Have fun with it!
15. Sleep: You’ve fallen into a deep sleep. Maybe you’ll wake up in a few turns, but falling asleep on a battlefield isn’t very much fun for anyone. What will the people around you do to bring you back? Hopefully, they don’t think you’re dead...

GAME SPECIFIC STATUS EFFECTS

16. Marked/Leech Seed (Dungeons and Dragons/Pokémon): You’ve drawn the attention of a nasty monster, and it’s left its scent on you. Run. Or try to fight it before it finishes you off. It could even be a person! Or a plant. Those vines certainly don’t look very happy with you, do they? Whatever it is, monster or sworn enemy or grass snake, it only has eyes for you.
17. Homesickness (Earthbound): You haven’t heard from home in a while. Maybe you don’t want to, or maybe it’s the only thing on your mind. It’s beginning to affect the way you think either way. Give them a call, or go back for a visit. Arrange something fun that reminds you of home. Mother knows best, after all!
18. Trouble (Final Fantasy IX): This one is tricky. So, your friend just got slapped. So why did you feel it, too? Whatever one person is feeling, their companion is going to feel as well. It could be painful, or it could lead to a closer understanding between you two. It could even feel good! But you’ll both feel it all.
19. Encumbered (Neverwinter Nights): You’ve been traveling for so long, and you’re exhausted. The only problem is you’re carrying so much stuff, that you don’t know what to do with it! Dropping that couch might be a good start...will someone help you with your load, or will you have to make it to the inn yourself? Or maybe you’ll sell some of it!
20: Huge (Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door): The opposite of tiny, you’re now too big to handle. This is good if you’ve got a bully or a squad of monsters to defeat. It’s not so good if you’re just trying to get around. What if you’re branded a giant, too? You could be mistaken for a threat! Or maybe people will like your new big self.
21. Fear (Persona series, others): You’re afraid of everything now. Your first instinct is to flee battle, not keep fighting. Man up a little! You’re going to be no use to your teammates if walking under a ladder is too terrifying for you.
22. Encore (Pokémon): You can’t stop doing what you’re doing. Through some supernatural means, you can’t stop attacking. Or that heal spell you cast, you can’t stop casting it even when you’re all at full HP. Or maybe you just can’t stop baking. You’ve got this strange compulsion that you just can’t stop.
23. Fatigue (Skies of Arcadia, others): You almost wish someone would cast a sleep spell on you. You’ve got insomnia, or you’ve just got so much work to do that you can’t focus. It’s even worse if it’s a spell, because you’re going to just be tired for so...long...hopefully, someone can help you out so you can feel better.
24. Balloon (Suikoden series): Holding one balloon is fine. But when you hold a second, you feel really light. One foot just comes off the ground. God forbid you grab a third, because as soon as you do? You’re going for a balloon ride through the city or the battlefield. Someone better get you down safely! Those things aren’t made for travel.
25. Lucky/Unlucky (Sonic Chronicles/Valkyria Chronicles): Everything is going your way. You found a lot of money just lying on the street. You’re hitting all the green lights. Every arrow you fire is hitting the bulls-eye, and don’t even get me started on those critical hits you’re getting! Or not getting, if you’re unlucky. You lost your wallet, and someone just hit your car and drove off. Ouch.
26. Shackled (Tactics Ogre): You can’t move. This spell has chains of energy keeping you from getting free, or someone has just tied you up and left you to rot in a dungeon. You might be able to stand up and run, but your arms won’t be free. There’s nothing you can do about this one, usually, without the help of someone else.
27. Spendthrift (Tactics Ogre): You can’t stop throwing money away! You have so much, that wherever you go, you just keep spending it. If you’re on a battlefield, you might be throwing it around or just dropping it, but the city? That’s definitely where it’s at. Hopefully, your friends will still like you when you’re broke.
28. Likes Men/Likes Women/Into Macho Men (Valkyria Chronicles): All of a sudden, you can’t stop thinking about men or women. It might have always been a part of your personality, but it’s even worse (or better?) now. People with this status will perform better when showing off, but they’ll be grumpier around the gender they don’t want to be with. Or maybe you’re not into men or women...but only the most feminine examples of beauty and the manliest of man? Don’t get too distracted!
29. Klutz/Bucket (Valkyria Chronicles/Suikoden Series): Your feet are just in your way today. You can’t stop tripping. Or maybe you’re spilling things. You turn around with a spear over your shoulder and accidentally smack someone in the face. If it gets too bad, you’ll end up with a bucket on your head from a zany mishap. Hopefully, someone can get it off!
30. Shut-In (Valkyria Chronicles): You don’t want to leave your house. Maybe you don’t even want to read your room. Sure, you go out and save the world sometimes, but you don’t want to socialize when you’re not working. You have no idea what’s going on outside your windows, and you want to keep it that way.
31: Choose your own! There are many more out there...some are worse, some are more fun. But which one will you be stuck with?

Meme written by and posted with permission from

jibunrestart

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

anything's possible

[ The constant crash, rattle, and ring of arcade games and overpriced prize dispensers and video monitors playing battle highlights on loop made for an exceptionally cacophonous backdrop to his mild contemplation of a ragged spot of violently purple floor runner before the toes of his boots, but it was nothing Cloud couldn't tune out properly, just the same. That aggressive violet would probably be burned onto the backs of his retinas for the better part of the rest of his life, but the scuffed and dirty checkerboard pattern (the white squares almost as dark as the black) that covered the rest of the floor wasn't much better for staring at. And the flashing lights that dominated the better part of the rest of the Arena lobby's scenery - not to mention the vast majority of the Saucer at large - would be bound by contract to all unfortunate laws of the universe to inspire in him a blinding migraine, before long, if he'd chosen them to focus on, instead.

So it was that floor runner that he was watching, in dire a need of replacement as the cheap tiles beneath, for the sake of prolonging his sanity (ha) in the increasingly apprehensive interim. That was, between now and the last time he'd seen Tifa, disappearing behind the heavy, steel-bolted door that led into the actual arena.

He couldn't say why she'd gone (maybe she'd gotten tired of hanging back, maybe she'd wanted to blow off some steam, maybe it was... a girl thing), but not knowing didn't bother him any more than he already was bothered - which was to say, considerably - by the simple fact that he couldn't be right there behind her.

Thanks to an "incident" none of the smartly-dressed attendants would elaborate upon willingly, the viewing area was "temporarily out of commission." Under other circumstances, he would've been curious as to just what exactly it was they had let loose in there that'd crushed through solid stone - after escaping the ring. But right now, the morbid intellectual curiosity of a seasoned fighter of all manner of massive and dangerous beasts was an unwelcome prickling at the back of his mind. As much so as the chaotic wall of sound he was struggling to listen through, though his relaxed posture (leant back against one of the counters positioned off to either side of the steps leading up to the arena proper's entrance, arms and ankles crossed resolutely) betrayed nothing.

At least not until the floodgate-worthy door up at the top of that short set of (ugly purple carpet-lined) stairs was sliding open again, abruptly - and five whole rounds earlier than he'd been expecting. Like a chord strung taut, his cool demeanor snapped as he jumped up out of his slight recline (a hand run through his hair a second after to hastily reassert his thoroughly nonchalant disposition). The neutral expression-

...faltered the second he saw no familiar silhouette backlit in the glow of the spotlight. If not for the sudden, small flop of shadowed motion from the thing that was emerging less than triumphantly, he probably wouldn't have seen anything at all.

But there it was, as he advanced up the steps without thinking - a little green frog.

Tangled up in a set of gloves he wouldn't mistake anywhere. ]

...Tifa?

[She might, possibly, deserve this.

Possibly.

Perhaps she shouldn't have gone into the Battle Arena without making sure her mind was focused entirely on the immediate and perhaps she could have found another way to bleed off the unmerited and ugly emotions she would rather not have and perhaps using her fists wasn't the most adult way to handle problems that were entirely mental. Aerith was her friend. Tifa really, really liked her. It was so nice to have feminine company on this trip, someone who actually understood things without having to have them explained and who encouraged her to be girly when she'd spent so much of her past few years denying that side of herself. She liked having someone she could exchange just a look with and know they understood the exasperated 'men' implied by it entirely. It was nice to have someone to talk to. Aerith made her feel good and made her want to take care of the other woman. Aerith was bright and bubbly and - and she'd been hurt more than she let people see. Tifa knew it... and that was why she always felt so horrible and small and ugly when the sudden pangs of jealous would hit her right in the gut. It wasn't Aerith's fault and it wasn't Cloud's and it was just hers and she needed to stop feeling that way. Sometimes it just got - sometimes she just felt so irritated with herself for feeling that way and so angry at herself that she couldn't seem to stop and - and the Battle Arena had seemed like a safe outlet for some of her self-loathing and frustration. Everyone else was out having fun and no one had been paying attention to her so she didn't have to worry that they'd think she was bloodthirsty or look at her strangely afterward for heading off to essentially pick a fight. She'd just meant to knock a bit of her self-aggravation off, get rid of some of the tension inside so that she could go back to being steady and calm and not petty.

When the frog spell had hit her, it had been annoying but she'd still had her items. When the first Maiden's Kiss hadn't worked, she'd been perturbed but had thought that there must have been something wrong with it. When the second one had failed too, she'd been mildly concerned but she'd still been able to fight and she wasn't about to throw in the towel just because she was less than a foot tall and green suddenly. She'd managed three more rounds as a frog and she'd been feeling pretty proud of herself - until the game took away her item bag. And her materia hadn't been available. And she'd been reduced to having to frog slap monsters between their attacks.

Getting batted all the way across the room in a little green body because you didn't have any bulk on you to slow it down hurt.

She'd been at the end of her abilities by the time the thunder birds had showed up and maybe she should have tapped out but she was too stubborn to give up during a fight. Instead she'd ended up a little green ball of fried frog before the arena had shut things down and hit her with the maximum healing spell. It had hurt but - you got hurt in fights. That was part of the deal when you agreed to go into the Battle Arena. She'd been expecting it and known that she'd be fixed up before anyone else would see.

What she hadn't expected was to still be green and tiny.

It turned out, after two of the attendants who had been handling the frog before it had been released into the arena had been found in amphibian form, that whatever kind of frog the Gold Saucer had gotten, it was one that had an attack that was immune to Maiden's Kisses. Tifa already wasn't fond of irony and the situation didn't help change her mind any. So she was stuck a frog, with the Hotel's apologies and offer of a free night's room of course, until the effect wore off naturally.

She still couldn't decide if it made her want to laugh or bury her head under a pillow and scream. Luckily, as a frog, there wasn't a possibility of doing either.

Of course they'd offered to carry her back to her room but her stupid pride had kicked in, because she was used to taking care of herself thankyouverymuch, and she'd decided to simply head back on her own. She could hide in her room and hopefully sleep the effect off and no one would ever have to be any wiser that, because she'd been stupid and petty and jealous in the first place, she'd gotten herself into an embarrassing pinch. There was no way she was going to be able to drag the rest of her clothes around but she'd thought she could manage her gloves at least, priorities already being hopelessly screwed up anyway, and so she'd been struggling with the concept of how to carry them properly for the long hop back to her room when she heard a voice above her.

About as far above her as her stomach managed to drop below her at the sound of it.

Slow, as if moving slowly could somehow make it not true or stall the inevitable, she lifted crimson eyes to look all the way up into a pair of mako blue ones she probably would have enjoyed seeing at just about any other time in her entire life. Instead, she shut her eyes and, thanks to the day she was having, it was probably just as well that the word that came out of her mouth when she opened it was simply:]

Ribbit.

Edited 2012-08-30 21:05 (UTC)

[ "Ribbit."

Informative.

But he doesn't really need the verbal affirmation his careful question implied, anyway; the gloves (and that wide-eyed, ruby red stare) were clear enough indicators of the situation as it stood. He wouldn't bother to ask why she hadn't been set back to rights by the parting gift of a courtesy cure (no esuna today, either, it seemed), or about whether the split of the group's collective inventory she'd gone in with had had any remedies appropriate to counteract her current predicament. And not least because she wouldn't be able to answer, anyway, as a frog.

The simple fact of the matter was that if there had been anything on her that she could've used to solve the problem, she would have done, already. And not been still reduced to hopping along laboriously down at boot heel to eye level. Tifa knew more about those things than most of the new AVALANCHE ever would, probably. For one, because she was quick, smart - and used to keeping stock, already. And for another, Cloud sometimes suspected, because she liked to be the one to look after the rest of them. Not out of obligation or some sense of it as being merely another chore in need of doing, he thought, but from the simple pleasure of doing something both necessary and good.

So he wasn't about to question her intelligence by putting forth the very most obvious question (though it did spring to mind, and he did have to bite his tongue to keep it down). Instead, he took a step back, his obvious shock lingering in the motion - and then took a knee at this safer distance. She wasn't getting anywhere fast, in that state, and even pride had to concede to that; he offered her a hand to hop into and a patently casual, ]

Come on.

[ -just a second before a tap on his bare shoulder stole his attention. Looking up, Cloud was met with the midsection of a Gold Saucer employee's uniform (the purple sash the same shade as that unpleasant runner under his knee) - and a little farther up than that, the fretful face of the blonde from behind the counter. ]

Excuse me, sir, are you with the, um, toad?

Frog.

The, the frog, then?

Yeah.

[ After handing over the rest of Tifa's things (pack, armor, clothes ... under stuff he wasn't looking too closely at) and a slip for that comped hotel room, the attendant apologized and returned to her post. Cloud looked skeptically on for another second before shaking his head. ]

Guess we're staying here another night.

[ Or at least until Tifa's bad status had worn off. ]

[There are a lot of things Tifa appreciates about Cloud and his simple 'come on' embodies many of them, so it's relief she feels when she opens her eyes to find nothing but his waiting hand and his acceptance of not only her strange situation but of his new part it in as well. A part of her wants to stay stubborn - but a much larger part of her feels small and lost and tired, of the situation but so much more so of being trapped in her own head with feelings she doesn't want to have all alone. Cloud's hand won't fix the second part, but it does let her push them away again into the recesses of her mind where she prefers they stay. He's here for her, when she needs him, yet again, and she's relieved enough by that fact to not want to ruin it by being stubborn about being on her own. She doesn't want to be on her own. It - just seems as if she'll end up that way.

Not yet though and while he has his short conversation with the attendant, Tifa makes herself busy by dragging over first one glove to his easily accessible hand and then the other. Not that she thinks he'd forget them if she doesn't but it helps sooth her that she isn't entirely useless and...

well, she might be a frog but she's still naked. Sitting on her own gloves seems a little less awkward than sitting in the palm of his hand, leather covered or no. Determinedly ignoring what's going on above her, she crawls on top of her gloves, careful of the embedded materia and dangerous metal edges. Only Cloud. Somehow the whole thing would be so much more humiliating if it was anyone but Cloud...

At his summary though, she hunches down, guilt creeping in. If she hadn't been silly and let petty emotions get under her skin in the first place, they wouldn't have to be stuck here for the night. She's been self-centered and it's messed things up for everyone. Technically, she knows that they don't have to stop for her for the night, it isn't as if she has to stay in a certain area until the effect wears off and it isn't as if she'll take up more room in the buggy but Cloud will sacrifice the travel they could have gotten done anyway. The same way he won't tell anyone why they aren't getting back on the road, she suspects, sparing her the embarrassment and taking the blame himself. She's still figuring out so many of the confusing parts that all seemed to be stitched together to make Cloud Strife but there are some that seem so familiar she swears she sometimes knows them without having to even think about it. Saying she's sorry was out of the question but she raises eyes to him that she hopes give it away all the same. She's supposed to help fix problems, not be one.]

[ With a voucher for the Ghost Hotel and Tifa's clothes all stuffed as hastily into her pack as he can manage without looking directly at them, Cloud slings the strap over his shoulder with his free hand. The other he pulls in toward his chest without thinking, as soon as a quick glance assures she's relatively settled; he can't very well go walking around holding her out at arm's length in a place like this, after all. Between the crowds and the slides and even the intermittent trap doors, that'd be asking for trouble.

So maybe it's not the most comfortable seat in the house, but no one's going to knock her out of his grip - or, perhaps even worse, actually notice what he's holding. Or probably care at all, if they don't recognize him, which is another gamble they'll be taking in getting from one end of the Saucer to the other. But there's really no way around that.

Navigating the crowds is easy enough, ordinarily, with most of the passersby quick enough to make their own preemptive move out of his way, nobody wanting to skirt too close to the guy with the massive sword and the permanent glower. (The only real hazards he's ever encountered worth keeping an eye out for are unwary little kids chasing each other around and the occasionally in-over-his-head guy in an overstuffed mascot suit.) And nothing's changed about that, just because he's got an extra bag of items over one shoulder and a frog in his hand - but Cloud moves a little stiffly as he puts the Battle Arena behind them, running out of ugly purple runner and finding himself shortly back on safer ground. ]

Doesn't matter. [ he corrects himself belatedly, apparently struggling with the task of keeping up a one-sided conversation with any hint of a positive note in it. ] They'll probably be happy to have another day off.

[ Which is true enough, really, especially after their first attempt at enjoying the sights and sounds ended so sourly. A day without the hassle of running from the law and getting tossed into a drab desert prison (and other annoyingly goal-unrelated shenanigans) would probably go over pretty well with the rest of the group.

Even if they have no idea why they're being granted this special reprieve, he doesn't expect too many questions. ]

[She can't help but watch him a little skeptically as he shoves her folded clothes into her pack. Naked is a new one too, considering how awkward the entire journey through the Gongaga area would have been if everyone on the team had constantly been being kissed back to normal stark naked. It does bring up the question of what horrible mutation of frog she'd fought had been and the even more uncomfortable question of what kind of position she just might be in when it wears off. Which... watching Cloud avoid looking too closely at certain items she's pretty sure he'd already bragged to half the team he'd rifled through as a teenager, she thinks just might give them both aneurisms thanks to popping blood vessels.

- not that she wants him fondling her underwear instead of avoiding gawking -

A little huff that ends up having her whole tiny chest expanding and contracting is her only concession that at least in this form no one can see her blush. She's also glad when he pulls her in close to his chest. It's a safe place, a spot that makes her feel secure and... wanted - and she's being stupid again because that's not why he's doing it and she should just enjoy feeling protected and - and so instead she focuses on how nice it is to have that much of her peripheral eyesight blocked off by the comforting dark, solid color of Cloud's shirt. Because, as a frog, she has a lot of peripheral eyesight and now that she's not in the locked down focus of battle, it's a little confusing, her brain telling her she's seeing too much and trying to somehow make it make sense. Warm blue is a much more comforting background than strobe lights and rattling games and she hunkers down in the safe spot his hand and protective chest make, concentrating on watching his fingers and what little of the ground she can see past them, stoically ignoring the frenetic busyness a little higher up. She has to tilt her entire head upward to look at him in a way that makes sense inside her brain when he speaks up again, still miserable eyed, but memory muscle has the edges of her mouth still quirking upward the littlest bit as it registers what he's saying.

It's one of those moments she has to resist throwing her arms around him in relief. It's easier than usual to resist considering the state of her arms but it's still there and she shifts back in his palm, settling in a little closer, feeling better. He's right. One day won't make that much of a difference, surely, and everyone does need a little time to relax and enjoy themselves and... if Cloud's trying his hardest to be positive about things, she thinks that means something important too. Maybe... she can find a way to get him to rest for the day too...?

She does her best to keep her evil intent out of her answering 'ribbit' to the positive but the wheels are already turning inside her little frogy mind, unaware that her eyelids have dropped to narrow her eyes and make it easier to plot, so caught up in her new determination that she not only misses the fact that narrow eyes make the world easier to see but, for a few seconds, she even misses the the sound of Cloud's name being called by a familiar voice far too close for comfort.

Then her eyes bug and she instinctively attempts a panicked hop for it.]

[ As if Gongaga hadn't already been awkward enough.

But that's in the past, and so is Tifa having a normal, human body (that he won't think on too long) - if only for the moment. Carrying her around is a weird enough feeling, on its own, even if this isn't necessarily a first. It's not like he hasn't been in the same situation, Frog'd or Mini'd into near uselessness by some wandering monster loose with its magic and misguided aggression. Being roughly the size of a child's doll or squeaky bath toy is no part of any particularly cherished memory of his. So he tries to think of it more like talking to her on the phone - except she can't talk back, and he's got all her clothes and-

All right. Unhelpful.

She isn't the only one thinking of having a few choice words with the Gold Saucer's administration in charge of monster wrangling when that familiar voice cuts through the crowd (or, at least, he assumes that's what she must be imagining, given the general tone of her last croak). At the same time he looks around, distracted surprise written all over his face, though, she apparently changes her mind about trusting his judgement and bolts.

Or hops, as it were. And very nearly makes it clear, too, in light of Cloud's suddenly torn attention, between the flash of pink and the streak of escaping green. It's only SOLDIER reflex that saves him, at the last second (maybe them both, with all those unwary, passing feet awaiting Tifa on the ground), as his head whips back around at the sudden levity of Tifa leaving his hand- Which snaps out to catch her landing, probably a little too tight on the grip (she looks pretty slippery, like that, he can't help it) until he remembers to correct himself. It all takes up about half a second, but that's long enough for their unwitting pursuer to start getting impatient- ]

Cloud!

[ And maybe even suspicious, which (knowing her) won't make this any easier.

Backing away through the crowds - which surge, luckily, as a showing at the theater lets out, all but obscuring them from view - Cloud makes a break for the nearest exit, down the rest of the steps and to the right. Hopefully, they're home free, wherever the winding tunnel lets out - he doesn't stop to read the signs, at any rate. ]

[The move is so fast that it catches her entirely by surprise. Even fighting next to Cloud in battle and knowing he's SOLDIER, there are times his speed still catches her off guard and, still operating on an instinctive 'run!' motivation herself, his snap rescue/capture of her knocks the air out of her as surly as his grip around her body does. There's the brief, still mainly instinctive wiggle to try to pop up out of his hand, little legs too enclosed to kick properly but the second she recognizes the sound of that voice calling his name a second time - and the impatience in said voice - her process reverses entirely and she's trying to stuff herself back down into the cup of his hand, tiny head almost succeeding in disappearing under the rim of his circling index finger and thumb. She's always been good at making herself small and this body seems made of rubber enough to accommodate and then some. Huge eyes, even by frog standard, catch enough of what's going on around her over the shield of his fingers to understand there's a hasty retreat being beaten but her heart is still working overtime inside her small chest. She trusts Cloud to watch over her, she really does, it's just - it's surprisingly hard not to be jumpy in this body, badly phrased joke or no.

Cloud absconds with her down a tunnel and she only hopes that one spike of hair of his that always tends to stick up over the top of things if he's not paying attention or she's not there to gently push it down, hasn't been a beacon to their pursuer like some heavenly finger pointing down to reveal their location. Aerith has a sharp curiosity and a persistence to match and Tifa doesn't doubt it would take the other girl less than a second or two to recognize the familiar, worn pack across Cloud's shoulder. Which would mean questions and even though Tifa can admit that she l- lo- that she's very fond of Cloud, he's not a very good liar. Riding shotgun in the clasp of his hand, peering barely over the tops of his fingers with narrowed eyes, she's already trying to find another exit out as they make it out of the long tunnel and into the next offered attraction the Gold Saucer seems to have no rhyme or reason behind.

There's no easy exit from where they've ended up though and Tifa makes a muted 'ribbit' from the hollow of his hand. Instead it's as close to a dead end as they could have gotten even trying. There's nothing but a small platform, an even smaller ticket booth and a wooden gondola. Taking the gondola could just mean Aerith would be waiting for them when it came back... but perhaps the ticket taker could be bribed to say no one had come that way? It was either that or go back out through the tunnel again. Which seemed doomed to failure. Hopeful eyed, Tifa peered up at Cloud's face above her and questioned a:]

ribbit?

Edited 2012-10-10 22:21 (UTC)

[ Even over the crush of the roaring crowds, he imagines he hears something like a frustrated huff with maybe an edge of surprise in it - not quite enough to stop him in his mad bid for escape, but just enough to make him feel a tiny (the tiniest) pang of guilt, beneath his calm, if presently somewhat harried, exterior. It's nothing against Aerith, who he can already imagine awkwardly apologizing to, later-on, for having not heard. (Even if she won't believe it, and "I ran away for no reason" won't fly.) But there are a lot of things about his current situation for which he has no explanation.

Like the fact that he's carrying Tifa's bag, in addition to his own. Or that it's got all her clothes in it. Or that her gloves (complete with weaponry) are in his hand.

Or that very live frog that he's carrying around - the one with the big, dark eyes, a shade of red that'd be more at home on one of its Toxic cousins. Given her first reaction - to flee, and at all costs if the continued wiggling of little (surprisingly strong) legs against the backs of his fingers is any indication - Tifa's equivalent aversion to telling the truth seems obvious. Thinking up poor excuses for yet another brief, characteristic spate of very abrupt rudeness will be a lot easier than coming up with believable explanations for any part of the rest of this. And there's not a doubt in his mind that Aerith will want to hear the whole story.

Or would, if he had any intention of letting such a messy, inexplicable thing get out.

He feels more than hears the next distressed croak from his frog-shaped passenger, muffled as it is by her renewed will to hide in the safety of his fist, and it startles him out of autopilot just in time. The tunnel's already let out, and where it has, it looks as if their first try at Gold Saucer roulette might well be the last. It's definitely a losing roll, either way; there isn't even much of a line in front of the gondola's little station. A couple of couples and a weary looking chaperon holding back three bouncing kids make up the crowd, here, and that leaves them precious little cover.

Another ribbit, and he glances down at her long enough to register just how expressive a frog's face can apparently be. Too bad his plan's just as bad as hers. ]

...Doesn't look like we've got any choice.

[ Except forward or back.

These train metaphors are really starting to get heavy-handed.

Rummaging in his pockets for some spare GP, he steps up into line. ]

Just... Try to hold still. [ Maybe they'll think she's a toy prize, looking like that, and nobody will be the wiser. ]

[Feeling more than a little guilty, what for she's not even sure in specific, she scoots down a bit more in his fist and shuts her eyes, what counts for a forehead on a frog coming to rest with a tiny thump against his finger, going perfectly still beyond the puff of her chest as she breathes. In the dark behind her eyes it does occur to her that she could simply scoot up over his shoulder and hide inside her pack on top of all of her things. It's not as if anyone's going to search it - well, Yuffie might hoping for spare materia but no bored, low paid gondola employee is going to bother be that invasive and so while it would probably be a bit stifling, it's a sensible solution. It would, however, mean being out of Cloud's grasp and she's not sure, if his instinctive grab for her is any indication, that either one of them are really ready for that just yet. She knows she's certainly not at least. She's trying her hardest not to feel small and helpless and scared and it's much easier to do when Cloud's got her firmly in-hand than it would bumping along on her own inside her backpack.

This... is really not how she'd hoped to spend her time at the Saucer this time around...

The little sigh makes her whole body swell a bit but the woman selling rides on the gondola is either too bored or too aware of Cloud's glower and sword, to comment if she even notices what he's carrying in his other hand. Chances are, Tifa suspects, the woman's probably seen much stranger in her time here. Or she just thinks Cloud's going on the ride by himself... He really does put himself in some of the most awkward situations for her, Tifa acknowledges as she hears the charge for one ticket and then feels the change in her ride's footing between the concrete of the Saucer and the slight sway of the gondola. It's not until she feels it start to move though that she finally peeks an eye open and dares look upward, sure, up until the very last second they'd hear an Aerith 'ah ha!'. As much as she considers the other girl her friend, maybe her first female one ever, there are some things Tifa just doesn't want to ever share about herself and being a frog is now ranking pretty high up there. Opening her other eye and raising her head, Tifa suspiciously surveys the interior of the ride, finding it lacking in what she's now beginning to suspect are bad Gold Saucer jokes, surprised to find how nice the sudden lack of the background noise of the Saucer is, before finally peering up questioningly at Cloud.

It's a definite 'what now?' look even if she can't say a thing.

[ He has a lie prepared for this, at least - something about just wanting to get a good view of the park, or maybe being lost and needing to regain his bearings - but the ticket-taker doesn't ask. (She barely acknowledges him beyond the exchange of GP and the all-important ticket, in fact. Though if it's because of the way he looks - and a wary attempt to avoid his fierce gaze - or merely her pronounced disinterest in the queue in general, he can't tell.

It's a relief, either way.

As Tifa can no doubt attest, Cloud is not a very good liar. Outside of I don't know and the ever appropriate I forgot, there aren't a lot of tried and true lines in his reserve. Dishonesty has always felt uncomfortably cumbersome on him, like an ill-fitted, overstuffed coat. Better to be blunt. Easier, too. Whether or not it's the most generally well-accepted tactic.

The immediate dip and sway of the gondola as his feet leave the comforting solidity of the platform sets off - just the slightest twinge, somewhere at the back of his mind, but it's easy to ignore. There's more than enough rattling around up there, already, to keep him preoccupied. Like holding his balance as the ride starts up, the door snapping shut behind them as gears and pulleys start to draw them away from the station. Outside the window, the little booth dwindles rapidly into insignificance as he tosses their packs to the floor and draws the sword off his back to balance against the opposite seat, before taking his own. It isn't until Tifa peeks up at him inquisitively and he glances down that he seems to remember the most deeply awkward part of this predicament.

What now? is a good question. ]

Uh...

[ Thinking fast, he leans forward and up from his sitting position, rocking the gondola in the process, and deposits her safely on the other side. There's more than enough room to sit away from the edge of his weapon, especially for someone presently the size of a perfectly ordinary frog, and the worn-smooth wood might be somewhat more comfortable than the inside of a weather-roughened leather glove.

That done, he proceeds to the next phase of the current plan: sitting back, crossing his arms, and waiting awkwardly for this ride to end. ]

[She finds herself set on the bench across from him and for a good minute afterward can only sit and blink occasionally. When you're a tiny frog there's not much else to do really. She can't see what's going on outside and conversation is out of the question - though the second may just be a relief considering it might get awkward fast if it was expected. Cloud certainly looks like he's settled into rock mode and isn't going to do anything for the entirety of the ride.

Cloud... sometimes being old friends is hard...

Her little chest rise and falls in a silent sigh. She'd had it all planned out. She was going to tell him. Or at least talk to him about it. Or... kind of make a confession as much as she could manage without confessing too much. It doesn't matter. She had made up her mind to finally get it out in the open. If he wanted to reject her afterward, than he could reject her and at least it wouldn't hurt all the time anymore, getting hopeful and then feeling crushed over a dozen things he did that she knew weren't even his fault or that he was even aware of. Aerith could have done this. The other girl is so much more forward and open about what's on her mind. Tifa knows, in her heart, that if she doesn't find her courage soon that -

that it might not matter if she does later on.

A ride like this, quiet and private - it's the perfect time to say something to him. If... she could managed to work up to it... Like the rest of her day here so far though, nothing is turning out right. Even if she had managed to be brave long enough, he won't understand a word she says right now anyway. Which... might not be such a bad thing. The thought perks her up a bit where she's slowly been sinking smaller and smaller on the bench. She can get it all out of her system now, tell him everything, everything everything, from the fact she doesn't remember him in Nibelheim to how she feels to what color her underwe- oh. He already knows that last one now... But the point is, she can say anything at all in this form and he'll never know and she'll still have it out of where it's all knotted up and tangled around inside her.

Except that's cheating. And, on a more basic level, she thinks that it would be one of those times when she'll turn back to human halfway through it and somehow the idea of popping up stark naked in front of Cloud seems less terrible than him hearing her blurt out how she feels about him. Plan foiled, she heaves another sigh and sinks down again. Even if it does sound like something the universe would do to her and therefor worth a try, Tifa thinks she'd rather stay a frog than risk it.

Which she supposes answers her on whether she would have been brave enough to go through with a confession or not.

She really is making a mess of her day at the Saucer - and by extension, ruining it for Cloud as well. If it hadn't been for stumbling accidentally upon her, he could have been out - out.... Her bulgy eyes narrow as she tries to imagine how he would spend his free time at the Saucer on his own if no one grabbed him to drag him off to do things with them. He did seem to like the snowboarding game...

It isn't fair he gets stuck with her when he could be out enjoying himself and relaxing. At least as much as Cloud ever seems to enjoy himself or relax. Almost non-existent shoulders firming, Tifa decides that she isn't going to let her mistake ruin his mini-vacation. Which meant the first part of that is getting him to enjoy whatever it is that the gondola ride is supposed to be so nice about showing them. With a 'ribbit' as her warning, she makes the leap across the abyss between them to land with a soft thunk on his knee, body abilities and innate balance nice enough to not make it too hard of a production. If this ride is about enjoying the sights of the Saucer than Cloud is going to enjoy the sights of the Saucer, frog or not, gosh darn it. Making eye contact, as best as frog vision allowed, she determinedly holds out one green front leg and waits for him to either realize what she wants or else to move enough to expose an open palm to her for another jump.]

Edited 2012-10-28 06:17 (UTC)

[ There... Really aren't half as many seriously contemplative matters on Cloud's mind, as they drift smoothly along the pre-planned course of the gondola ride. Tifa's assessment is more or less correct, from the start; he's locked down, arms crossed firmly over his chest, not ready to move any more than he needs to breathe or snatch the occasional glance out one of the windows. Basically, he's looking anywhere but at her, not wanting to draw any more attention to the fact that things are not exactly ideal as they are, his expression one of a fixed severity. There are a lot of things Cloud doesn't pick up on (that's inarguable fact), but he is fairly confident in his interpretation of the few cues that haven't simply flown over his head, since he came back to Midgar and saw a familiar face for the first time in years. And that keeping his lips zipped and an unreadable look on every other part of his face is the safest measure in an awkward situation is a truth he is sure of.

It isn't like he's known for his engaging conversation, anyway, to Tifa or anybody else. Human or frog, she'd probably still be doing most of the talking (or ribbiting), with only the occasional glance or affirmative from him. When he hears that oddly deflated croak, he looks up (but not that far up) - and then away again, just as quickly and not-quite-casually. Even by frog body language, which he's no better versed in than the human kind, that one's obvious.

So it's back to the window, and trying to feign interest in stuff he's seen before (and finds more interesting from floor level, anyway). In truth, he's about as intrigued by the pattern of wood grain in the gondola's floor as he is by the view; intellectually, he understands that it's meant to be exciting or romantic or something, but knowing a thing and feeling it are very different, and right now all the ride stands for is a means to an end. Keeping them out of sight for the decent little span of time it'll take to wind their way around the whole park is the only plan he's concerned with, whatever he might've been thinking of doing instead, before.

Snowboard notwithstanding, he never really stopped long enough to consider this a reprieve from their real mission, in the first place.

Another ribbit - this one projected with something almost like determination - startles him out of his non-thought, and Cloud glances over to the other, seemingly empty, seat. Just in time to be further surprised (enough to jump in his own seat, shock on his face) as Tifa in frog form literally launches herself at him. ]

...What?

[ He's already unfolded his crossed arms to keep from sliding around too much in his startlement, but for a couple of seconds more can only blink dumbly at her outstretched froggy limb.

Oh.

A hand up? He probably should have guessed she'd at least want to see the view, while stuck like that, and stuck in here. He holds out a hand, eventually, dubiously, and casts a measuring glance over the windowsill. It looks wide enough for her to sit on, though probably not very comfortably... ]

[She's not sure how she feels about being this small and - mobile. Of course she doesn't want to be a frog. It's awkward. None of her body is where it's supposed to be, her eyesight is still giving her too much of a view, she can't talk...

And yet she can sit on Cloud's knee or fit into his hand and -

And it's probably sad that she finds that such a comforting feeling. She knows it. Just because she could, presumably, fit into his pocket and ride around with him anywhere he went now, and that's an appealing thought - it doesn't mean it's the right thought or that she should probably even be having it. He needs her in her human form to help him - and she needs to be in her human form anyway because it's who she is... but it's still surprisingly nice to be able to hitch herself up into his open hand when he offers it and feel safe and comfortable there. Because it's Cloud and he'll keep her safe while he holds her.

It probably says something horribly depressing about her that that is what she gets out of this entire situation. You'd think she wasn't hugged enough as a child or something...

Pushing it aside, she straightens once she's in his hand again, turning a full circle to reorient herself. The panoramic vision is handy that way but it's also confusing, taking serious concentration on her part to make it make sense. Once she's sure again though, she lifts her head a bit more to look up at him, feeling better already. She doesn't want to sit on the windowsill however. Her goal is his shoulder but she can't just go throwing herself at different parts of him and startling him and if he moves, there's a good chance she'll end up in a painful splat somewhere. You don't throw fast moving objects at someone that's instinctively wired to avoid blows.

snowboarding...

Very serious eyes look up at his - and then Tifa straightens to her full - very diminutive - height deliberately before she leans. It's a hard, obvious lean just about as far to that side as she can manage without going over, front pads locked over his thumb to keep her in place. For emphasis, she jerks a little to that side in her lean as well. Cloud's all about non-verbal communication and she kind of hopes he picks up on her exaggerated game of froggy charades as well. How hard can steering a Cloud possibly be?]

[ If Cloud could remember much of Nibelheim - he'd probably be forced to tacitly agree that hugs there were in short supply.

Not that that isn't true of most of the world, these days. Not to mention, it's kind of hard to just go around hugging people, as an adult. Especially one already as awkward (as either of them). But that's all entirely beside the point, even if there's a bright green frog with suspiciously arresting red eyes sitting in his palm and hugging his thumb. Which is a weird feeling, for the record, and probably only comparable to the absolute certainty that this frog (who is really Tifa, even if it's still a strange, roundabout course of thought to rectify the two) is doing its damnedest to communicate with him something imperative.

In the end, it's not that he actually deciphers her intent so much as simply flinches in accordance with the shift of all her nearly inconsequential weight. His hand moves in the direction of her not exactly forceful steer, even as he shakes his head- ]

I don't get it.

[Verbally he has no idea what she's doing but instinctively he does respond to her and she suspects that's the best way to train him anyway. She's still figuring him out and she knows she has a long way to go in that area but he seems to work best when he's not thinking. Except that sounds all wrong. Cloud's a very good thinker, oftentimes Tifa thinks he thinks too much in fact, at least he seems to about the wrong things and somehow skims over the important things without really touching them in her mind but that's not the point. The point is that a great deal of what makes Cloud such a good leader is he just does and he very rarely seems to actually think about it beforehand when it's something immediate and important. She honestly doesn't remember if he was that way as a child or not and maybe she's entirely wrong about him in that area but he's very good at doing and sometimes he seems to trip himself up when he thinks too much about the doing. And while she realizes that being that way is a good way to get in over your head before you realize it, a part of her that always overthinks everything herself and second guesses thing to pieces finds a strange measure of reassurance in his 'simply do it' approach.

Which could very easily be just another measure of her messed up way of looking at things lately. It's just that Cloud's instincts seem to so often be right.

The same way moving his hand when she leans is right even though he says he doesn't understand. So she ignores his words, instead patting her flappy paws rapidly on his thumb once she's straightened in approval with an encouraging croak or two thrown in for good measure before wrapping those pads around his thumb again and very drastically and suddenly leaning tipped sideways in the opposite direction.]

[ Okay, that's it. Cloud's officially redefining his definition of "weird" from

"Weird is carrying around your closest childhood friend in the form of a frog."

to

"Weird is weirdly knowing exactly what said childhood friend means when she starts ribbiting and flapping her feet(?) ... frog-paws around like that."

Tipping his hand immediately in the other direction, as indicated, Cloud is briefly overcome with the same brand of enthusiasm he shows for such grandiose triumphs in life as picking a winning ticket at the chocobo races and moves her over to the other side with what may be a dizzying, sudden swiftness. ]

You want to go this way?

[Too fast! Big buggy frog eyes take in way too much already for sudden movements to get added to the list and she quickly snaps them shut, cheeks puffing out and, strangely, possibly going a bit green around the edges. Suddenly, she has so much more sympathy for Yuffie and her motion sickness. Little froggy arms hang on tight to his thumb though and she does take a great deal of pride, somewhere between the churning stomach, in the fact that Cloud picked up on what she was doing so fast.

She'll flap her little frog paws at him in pleasure. Right after her stomach settles down again.]

[ That momentary burst of excitement is quick to swap out with his usual brand of I'm-paying-attention intensity, and it's then that he notices something's off. Putting himself in frog shoes for a second and realizing what a disorientating move that must've been isn't his first instinct, but there's not a lot of wiggle room for mistaking her reaction, either.

Not that he'd know anything about motion sickness. (Ha ha.) ]

Uh, sorry. [ Doing his best to hold his palm level, he does his best to keep perfectly still as she clings to his hand. ]

[The lack of motion helps and soon she squints first one eye and then the other open. Nothing lurches alarmingly and her stomach settles fairly quickly. Which also reminds her that she's got a stomach and there's a brief moment of worry about what she'll do if she gets hungry and is still in this form but she pushes that aside and focuses on the face above her, managing a weak smile as much as a wide split of a froggy mouth can manage. The ribbit she gives is meant as encouragement and she manages to unlock her slim arms from his thumb enough to pat the top of it reassuringly. She's had so much worse, a bit of motion sickness is nothing. They're not quite done with their lessons yet though and so she resolutely wraps her little paws around his thumb again and, now for the hard part but hopefully he's understood that there's a gist to what she's doing going on here, she stretches her little body as high up as she can while still sitting in his palm, doing a bit of an upward bounce for additional emphasis.]

[ She always bounces back quick, of course; she's Tifa. ...Even as a frog. She also thinks entirely too far ahead, though - even if she did find herself in a state of absolute starvation within the ensuing latter half of the gondola ride around the park, there aren't any flies buzzing around the confined space. With the only food to hand consisting of the dry rations in their packs, she's probably safe. Or, safe enough, given the problems inherent in no longer having teeth and also the tongue thing.

But, again, that's the infinite future, and Cloud's pretty sure this whole dilemma will solve itself long before any real issues arise. Weird little side-stories like this always tend to wrap themselves up neatly enough, at any rate. ]

Up?

[ Getting the hang of this, all right. He lifts his hand father up - with distinctly more care than before. He doesn't know if frogs can throw up, but he doesn't really want to know, either, and he sure as heck doesn't want it all over his glove anyway.

He might be a little bit proud of himself for figuring this out as fast as he did, but, hey, frog charades definitely aren't in the SOLDIER manual. ]

[He picks up on it right away now that he's got the gist of what she's doing and she's proud of him too, stopping stretching upward once he's done it enough and happily patting her froggy paws on the top of his thumb with an added encouraging ribbit or two throw in to show how pleased she is. She knew it would be easy to train him! At least with hand movements.

One step at a time.

Which meant enjoying what he had given her. With a few more happy pats to his thumb, she looks up to meet his eyes and then deliberately narrows hers, long pat-pat of back froggy feet against the leather of his glove as she settles into a more stable stance. With what she hopes is a 'let's do this' ribbit, she wraps her small arms back around his thumb again, ready to get down to serious business now that he knows what's going on.

Except...

At first, she'd just intended to let him figure out her steering motion and then get him to lever her over to his shoulder to sit on so she could see what was going on out the window but, somewhere in the very back of her mind where she'll never encourage it or admit to it, there might just possibly be spark of some kind of mischief.

And steering him is pretty fun.

Knowing better, she still gives in to her impulse and decides to see just how far he'll go to let her 'steer'. Luckily for him, they're already trapped in a fairly small space. Unlikely for him, once she starts, Tifa has no problem seeing just how willing he is to climb onto benches or move to the opposite corner only to move back to his original corner for as long as he'll let her before he figures out she's just messing with him.

Lesson One, Cloud: All Frogs Are Evil.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

The RPG Status Effect Meme

Tifa Lockheart/Final Fantasy VII

next time you read my mind i am going to start calling you on your witchcraft

just embrace the assimilation. You get cookies.

if we're both thinking of rewriting The Date with Tifa in frog form, i'll consider it

I can endorse this idea

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hahaha! love that icon

it's the best face ever, hands down.

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