#skywheel

At this point it has to be malicious, Starscream thinks to himself as he seethes. Taunting me with their relationship! (Wheeljack and Skyfire are, in fact, not being malicious. They are not thinking of Starscream at all.)

Skyfire drags Wheeljack around the world to study its animals and environments and maybe find something Wheeljack can use to turn the tides of the war in their favor again, unaware of the jet following them from a distance the entire time.

/Scene: The Skywheel With Barret And Cloud/

Cloud: We really doin’ this?

Barret: Could use some peace and quiet. Couldn’t you? C’mon.

(They step onto the Skywheel’s gondola together)

(They sit and Barret notices a circle in the middle of their booth)

Barret: What’s this?

(It spins!)

(They look outside the windows together. There’s a light display of space ships flying around and attacking each other)

Barret: Whoa

(Then Barret thinks they’re coming at him)

Barret: Get down!

Cloud: Hey—

(Barret raises his trigger arm, ready to attack and Cloud stops him. The lights fly off into the distance.)

Cloud: You tryin’ to break it?

Barret (awkwardly standing there afterwards): Hmn…Just messin’ with ya.

(Barret turns his attention back to the windows and the lights beyond them. Then there are Chocobo’s racing in the lights. They burst into their gondola and fly off)

Barret (smiling very wide with star eyes and no sunglasses to shield his amazement) makes the Chocobo pun: In-kweh-dible!

(Barret laughs and—) Ha oh—

(He looks down at Cloud who is being mister serious man and sobers up. He sits down and seriouses up, putting his sunglasses back on and looking cool)

(They watch the fireworks bursting outside their window on the Skywheel. It’s beautiful and Barret seems pretty impressed by it all displayed before him. His voice softens.)

Barret: When I was about your age…I decided I’d had enough of the mines. Wasn’t much interested in any kind of work. I was young and wanted to enjoy my youth.

And then I met a sweet girl named Myrna. Knew right away she was the one. But Myrna, she wasn’t buying what I was sellin.’ Told me she was “in the market for a man, not a selfish little boy.”

If I was gonna win her heart, I had some growin’ up to do. Otherwise, she’d never give me the time of day.

Funny enough, our first date was at a theme park. Nowhere near as big as this place, of course— just a travelin’ fair with a handful of rides. We ended up ridin’ these wooden chocobos round and round, laughin’ our asses off.

(Barret lets out a small laugh)

Look at me, boring you with my old stories.

Cloud: Wouldn’t be the first time. Don’t worry— I’m used to it.

Barret: Hm (draws in a breath and then says:) Yeah, well…the lesson here is once you find your soulmate, you never let ‘em go.

So—

(Barret takes off his sunglasses and leans closer to Cloud. He stares at him and says—)

Barret: Who is it? Hmm?

Cloud: Who’s what?

Barret (rising to his feet says): You know damn well what I’m talkin’ about. Why do you always have to overthink things? That ain’t no way to live! You gotta just go for it sometimes.

Cloud: You mean, like you do all the time?

Barret: Hmm, touché.

(Barret leans back down into his seat with a small chuckle)

Barret: You could say that we balance each other out.

Cloud: Yeah.

(They’re sharing a moment. Barret laughs gently.)

Barret: Hm. I mean it, though. If you do have feelin’s for someone, tell ‘em straight out. Don’t wait til it’s too late.

Cloud: … Right.

(Cloud stares out the window as the fireworks rain down. All we see is his face though as it lights up with soft colors from each explosion.)

(The scene fades to black and then they exit the gondola together, Cloud first and Barret just behind him.)

Barret: Thanks for comin’ out tonight. I appreciate it.

(Cloud stops to listen to him, his head angled slightly back toward him. And then Cloud turns as Barret finishes telling him he appreciates it.)

(Cloud looks at him and shrugs with a small hm and the hint of a smile on his face.)

Barret (holding up his literally weaponized arm): Tomorrow, we’re gonna go to town on those suckers.

Cloud: Yeah.

(They walk away from the Skywheel together.

Dear Dichotomous Discusser,