𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐥

AH , a kindred spirit ! a man who knows true beauty when he sees it ! and ... what's more ... he does not shy away from a race ? oh , roche can feel his heart pounding , racing long before he has even mounted his steed ! it's not every day he runs into a fellow bike aficionado by chance like this , and he's all but fighting to keep his excitement contained to a less frightening degree . the speed demon knows all too well that he has always been too much for other people ... but in truth , he doesn't know any other way to be .

❛ no way ⸻ shiva ? ❜ he exclaims , and the flashy flare of that dramatic mien deflates , effaced instead by something more genuine .

all of sudden , the SOLDIER's voice rises an octave , wide , wide eyes eagerly searching high and low in their vicinity for the motorcycle . what does shiva look like ? how fast can she gallop ? does she look anything like the strapping young gentleman before him ? he's found that the steed often resembles the owner , anyway , and why shouldn't it ? one's mount should always be a reflection of the rider's very soul .

OH   HE   CAN'T   WAIT   see   the   look   on   the   other   man's   face   when   he   sees   his   beauty   on   wheels.   a   confident   grin   stretches   across   his   face   as   he   steps   back   and   outstretches   his   left   arm.   he   pulls   back   his   sleeve,   revealing   the   mark   of   the   l'cie.   with   a   click   of   his   teeth   and   a   wink,   he   calls   forth   his   eidolons:   the   shiva   sisters.   stiria   and   nyx   appear   in   shimmering   particles   of   ice   and   snow     ——       exuding   a   chill   in   the   air.  

usually   he'd   have   to   build   energy   and   activate   gestalt   mode   in   order   to   have   them   transform   into   the   motorcycle,   but   he's   since   perfected   (   with   lots   of   trial   and   error   )   the   transformation.

snow   simply   snaps   his   fingers,   and   the   sisters'   ethereal   figures   begin   to   coalesce,   their   bodies   arching   and   twisting   in   a   graceful   ballet   of   ice   and   engineering.   they   smoothly   shift   and   merge,   frost   spreading   over   metal   as   two   become   one—a   motorcycle,   adorned   in   the   icy   allure   that   is   quintessentially   shiva.

❝ it's   rad,   isn't   it? ❞   he   swings   a   leg   over   the   bike,   a   perfect   picture   of   eagerness   about   to   erupt   into   unbridled   excitement.   snow   revs   the   engine.   ❝ ready   to  hit   the   road. . . ? ❞ 

UNDER JUNON REMINDS HIM OF HOME ⸻ clandestine among the jagged rockies overlooking the sea , swallowed up by the shadow of luxury . like a fruit's rotten center does its stench fill the air , its peoples forsaken ⸻ no different from the midgar slums he grew up in . shinra could care less about their rot , so long as their exterior sublimely shines . two - faced ⸻ just like shinra itself .

he has thus come here to forget what awaits above . the glitz and glamor of junon beckons his luxurious tastes and eye for beauty , but there will be enough of that farce , come the junon parade . he had just come out of the bar right across the inn , having dulled the mind's ruminations with a sour drink ⸻ when his eyes catch a most peculiar young man ⸻ blonde , of impressive stature ⸻ standing close to his red steed .

his body language suggests that he just might be waiting for someone ... as to who that someone is , well ... if his intuition is correct ...

❛ well , well , well ... don't we look like a gentleman anxiously waiting for the arrival of his beloved ! ❜ teases roche from a short distance .

he addresses the other with such a casual familiarity , a bystander would think they've met ⸻ that they are old friends , meeting at an already predetermined place ... but it could not be farther from the truth . it is in his nature , after all , to address everyone as if they were his friend , detesting the discomfort of formality and first meetings .

with a confident swagger , roche approaches the other , and lets his mako gaze size him up briefly from head to toe . he's handsome , with a hint of a gruff edge . young . sturdy ⸻ is he a warrior ? ⸻ much too tall , however . perishing the thought , his gaze naturally drifts to his bike , lovingly dubbed 'bijou' .

SNOW  FOUND  HIMSELF  DRAWN  to  the  raw  energy  that  radiated  from  Roche.  His  pulse  quickened,  an  involuntary  response  to  the  spectacle  before  him.  'Handsome  guy,  with  a  beautiful  bike...  Guess  there  are  still  some  things  that  can  get  my  heart  racing  these  days,'  he  muses  silently  as  he  gazes  at  the  shorter  man's  confident  stance,  his  beautifully  colored  eyes,  the  dazzling  grin. 

A  small  smirk  tugged  at  the  corners  of  his  mouth.  and  he rocks  back  on  his  heels,  a  laugh  coloring  his  voice  in  warmth. 

"I  appreciate  good  art  when  I  see  it,"  he  says,  respectfully  nodding  towards  Bijou. 

The  revelation  that  Roche  names  his  bike  too—that  shared  quirk—it's  quite  like  finding  gold.  His  excitement  bubbles  beneath  the  surface,  a  carbonated  joy  waiting  to  pop.  Snow  stood  there,  still  somewhat  awestruck,  undecided  on  whether  it  was  more  the  man  or  the  machine  that  had  him  weak  in  the  knees—but  undeniably  intrigued  by  both.  Catching  himself,  he  clears  his  throat  and  closes  the  space  between  them.  At  this  point,  they're  already  friends  and  he'll  treat  the  other  as  such. 

"You  know,"  he  strokes  his  stubble.  "Bijou  is  quite  the  beauty.  She  up  for  a  race  against  Shiva?  I'm  game  if  you  are."

It's not  every  day   'Shiva,'   ⸻   a  name  inspired  by  the  frosty  elegance  and  might  of  the  eidolon  sitting  within  his  heart ⸻ gets  to  feel  the burn  of  competition. 

if you love me, you don’t love me in a way i understand.

there are so many things i’m not allowed to tell you.

you say ‘i’ll give you anything,’ but you never come through.

please, for just one night, will you lie down next to me?

you wanted happiness. i can’t blame you for that.

i owe you, i owe you everything.

tell me you love this, tell me you’re not miserable.

you didn’t show up. i kept waiting.

why take more than we need? because we can.

i want to explain myself to myself in an understandable way.

people like to think war means something.

you are here, you are here, you’re still right here.

sorry about how i ruined everything by saying it out loud.

will you defend yourself?

let’s not talk about it, let’s just not talk.

how much can you change and get away with it, before you turn into someone else, before it’s some kind of murder?

i ran and i knew you wouldn’t catch me.

when you have nothing to say, set something on fire.

you still get to be the hero.

tell me how all this, and love too, will ruin us.

i’m bleeding, i’m not just making conversation.

eventually something you love is going to be taken away. 

you want a better story. who wouldn’t?

i hope it’s love. i’m trying really hard to make it love.

we are not dirty.

i will come back from the dead for you.

you are a fever i’m learning to live with.

do you want to go home now?

there’s nowhere to go.

i’d rather quit. i’d rather be sad.

unfortunately, we don’t have that kind of time.

you take the things you love and tear them apart.

there is no way to make this story interesting.

i don’t think i can take this much longer.

do you love yourself? 

sorry about the blood in your mouth. i wish it was mine.

even when i look away i am still looking.

i think i need to do this alone.

what more do you want?

you saved my life.

someone has to leave first.

i swear, i end up feeling empty, like you’ve taken something out of me.

will you love me even more when i’m dead?