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[Open musings, no hacking needed]

So many people have changed again... and a lot of them have gone back to normal. I guess it was expected, considering most Malnosso experiments last about a week, but--

...why... am I still here?

Or more importantly, why am I still this age?

I thought I'd be sent back for sure. Is... this how I'll be from now on?

~~Should I be happy or what...?~~

[ooc: Simon's still 28 of course! Strikes hackable. Computer geek Simon is not.]

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It's not selfish. [Cloud leans, one arm bracing himself across Simon's shoulders as he looks down at the drill.]

And it's not a burden.

[Simon can't help but blush a little at that. As awkward as Cloud was with words - they were rather alike in that way - he always seemed to find ways to make Simon feel better. This is no different, and he lifts a hand to touch Cloud's, smiling gratefully.]

Thanks, Papa. I'm... really glad I was able to make it back here, even for just a little while.

[Cloud's arm loops around Simon's neck and gives him a little hug, bumping their temples before pulling back and moving to colleect the drill.]

And I'm glad you came, however long you end up staying.

[Simon keeps on smiling at that, holding on to Cloud for as long as they're close together. It's not long, but it's a moment of physical contact that Simon obviously treasures.]

Me too. I... yeah. Definitely... me too.

[Now, Cloud is no social genuis. In fact, he is fairly far from it, but it doesn't take a genius so much as a living, breathing organism to tell that Simon was just as starved for love, physical contact and attention at twenty-eight as he was at seven. Cloud generally wasn't very touchy. The four years in Nibelheim had ingrained in him somehow that touch was bad, so he usually shirked away. But this was Simon.

And that made all the difference. So Cloud just looks down at Simon there on his stool before setting the drill back down and pulling him into a hug, Simon's face against his chest as he stands. It was easier at this height -if he'd hugged Simon while he was still standing, Cloud would have felt like such a girl- but this way, it was okay. It made him feel like Papa again.]

[Simon goes still at the touch, visible eye wide and astonished. He doesn't move at first, then without warning, his arms lift and be grasps Cloud back, in something akin to a bear hug. He tries not to cling, but this is something he's both wanted and needed for a very long time. He hadn't been held since before Nia... left him.]

S... sorry... I'm being such a kid about all of this...

No you're not. [Cloud strokes Simon's hair, and remembers the nights he read the boy to sleep, only to sit there at the edge of the bed and watch him for nearly an hour afterwards, hand on his head.] You missed me, right? If it had been twenty-one years for me, I'd be exactly the same way. Probably worse.

I've... missed a lot of people, to be honest.

[Simon buries his face a little, shaking almost imperceptibly. God, he'd kept a lot inside for so long... why was it so hard, now, to keep it hidden...?]

[Cloud's arms tighten a bit when he feels Simon shaking, and he drags his hand through his hair again.]

All the more reason not to beat yourself up over it.

[Simon feels a half amused, half bitter smile cross his lips.]

It's been so long, you'd think I would be used to it by now. It's just...

[He tries to suppress another shudder, failing miserably.]

You're here, and he's here, and... she was here, and I didn't even know it...

[Cloud could make a vague guess at who the 'he' was, and felt his heart sink. If he was going to jump to assumptions, that would mean that in the future, that loud, noisy kid was going to die.

...what a depressing realization.

However, Cloud didn't have any idea who 'she' was, and debated for a moment before finally deciding to just ask, still stroking Simon's hair.]

Who's 'she?'

There was a girl here, who befriended me not long ago... her name was Nia. She was from my world. I just... didn't know it yet.

[He draws back a little, body hunched, and reaches into his cape, drawing out a chain with a small, plain silver ring around it, studying it for a long moment.

It's a wedding ring.]

[Now that's like a punch to the gut. The guy lost his wife. More than that, his grown-up son lost the man he admired most, and his wife. Cloud tried to picture a life without either Zack or Tifa and found that he just couldn't.

He swallows hard, hands still on Simon's shoulders even as they are apart and both staring down at the ring.]

...I...see.

[Simon lets the ring drop back into his shirt, smiling sadly, brushing a hand through his hair.]

I don't really have anything there for me. It's... why I really hope that somehow, you can take my kid self to your world. Maybe that version of me can get his happily ever after, you know...?

[Well, that did it. Cloud scowled, hands clenching a bit at the jacket on Simon's shoulders.]

I'm going to get you, too. If you end up going back...I'll find a way to find you.

[Simon frowns slightly, then looks down, not sure of what to say for a while. He wants to agree, but... how would such a thing be possible--

He stops there.

... I'm an idiot.]

Do the impossible... and kick reason to the curb.

[He grins faintly.]

Welcome to the Great Gurren Brigade, Papa.

[He was happy Simon was smiling, but...]

...the Great what?

The Great Gurren Brigade! It's the way to a man's soul!

The way to...

Simon, I don't think I follow. What are you talking about?

[Simon just grins again.]

It's a group Kamina and I led back home. The motto was just as outrageous as he was, but he made it work.

[Seeing Simon smile like that makes it okay in Cloud's book, although he has to give his aged son a strange smile.]

Well, all right. I guess I accept the membership.

Alright!

[Simon's grin broadens, and he clenches a hand into a fist, strong and steady once more.]

First order of business is to take care of that barrier! We can't be the invincible and free Gurren Brigade when we're locked up like this!

[Like flipping a switch. Cloud quirks his lips, a little confused, but folds his arms and looks down at Simon.]

If you have any ideas, I'll be glad to hear them. The thing is invincible; I think we need more tactics than brute strength concerning that nice little roadblock.

[Simon chuckles faintly, hands going to his hips.]

If aniki were here now, he'd probably say something like "brute force is a great tactic!" He always had the craziest ideas. Anyway, if we're going to break the barrier, we'll need a lot of power. I've dealt with this kind of thing before, and the easiest way to access what's beyond is to overload what's blocking your way!

[Here Cloud looks kind of skeptical.]

I suppose you'll be doing that with Spiral energy?

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