Sugar and Rainbows (Ebony/Closed)

[Repa Raines]

Princess at Heart
Yeah I'm a Princess...but I'm no Damsel in Distress...Far from it.

What could be more horrible than being pelted with stress everywhere you turn? That seemed to be the case right here with Repa. It wasn’t so much bad luck anymore as it was stress and bad news and events just lurking around. Okay so bad luck was part of it, but mostly it was the news of others and things she may be getting herself involved in. Like Cloud Strife for instance, one of her best friends, a brother to her, was a L’Cie, how was she to cope with that? Either he turns into a crystal for who knows how long, or he becomes a monster. There was no real win with that one. Then there was…oh god, Repa’s love life. She had two guys after her right now, one whom she was with and the other, she cared for a lot. How was she to sort that one out?

It just seemed that stress was really building these past few weeks. Maybe what she needed was a vacation. Away from home, and away from Gaia, away from anything she knew and maybe in a few days she would return. But Repa knew better than that, she couldn’t just run off anytime she had a problem, although that’s how she handled it in the first place, leaving home, leading her to new worlds and people. It was really her own fault for all this.

With a sigh Repa sat down on some concrete stairs outside her condo building. She closed her eyes and waited for something to pop into her mind, something to tell her what to do. Run away? Or face her problems. All she knew was life, wasn’t so great after all. It wasn’t all sugar and rainbows anymore.

[Ebony Blackwell]

Gaia. A world much different than Cocoon. Where Cocoon was more...bright and efficient in a way, Gaia was a much darker world in comparison.

Ebony walked through the streets...completely lost. She had only been in Cocoon, never leaving the city, except for escorts. And even then, she just had to follow the family. She never really ever needed to know where everything was. Only in the city she lived in.

But here, everything was completely unfamiliar. She even looked misplaced here. People stared as she walked past, trying to keep some manner of a calm demeanor, but that was slowly withering away as the minutes ticked off.

Someone had to know where she was! But, then again, everyone was shying away from her. This would be harder than she thought. Suddenly, she noticed a girl sitting on some stairs over on outskirts of the street. Maybe she should try her? It was worth a shot. So Ebony walked over and asked.

"Excuse me...do you know where the library is?"

[Repa Raines]

Princess at Heart
Yeah I'm a Princess...but I'm no Damsel in Distress...Far from it.

Repa had her eyes closed and her mind in deep thought as she rested her head against her gloved hands, which they rested upon her knees as she sat there. It was unusual for someone to sit outside and think? Or day dream? Or doze off…okay yeah it kind of was strange. Not that it bothered her, it wasn’t like this was her home world or anything, just a temporary home away from home. If that made any sense. While thinking upon all the problems of today, her thoughts were interrupted by a voice, obviously talking to her because there was no one else really around and the voice was close by. Feeling obligated to at least acknowledge the other person, Repa opened one of her icy blue eyes and stared at the girl ahead of her before opening her other eye and sitting up. This girl had to be a new comer as well, seeing as she didn’t know the location and she really did look different.

After Repa blinked a few times at Ebony she stood up and rubbed the back of her head, she hadn’t gotten to know all the locations around town, but she knew some of it, the library, wasn’t one of the sights she’d come to see yet. “Ah, as much as I would love to help you…I really don’t know where it’s at…I’m not exactly from around here, as I’m assuming you aren’t either?” It was a pretty good assumption. “Although if you need any other help finding someplace…I know the layout fairly well…I’m Repa by the way…Repa…Raines.” She said trying to be polite with the manners she was raised with, introductions and smiles, those were great first impressions.

[Ebony Blackwell]

Ebony stood there silently as the girl she had addressed the question to cracked open one eye before opening both completelely and sitting up straight. The girl seemed to stare at her for a second before finally answering.

“Ah, as much as I would love to help you…I really don’t know where it’s at…I’m not exactly from around here, as I’m assuming you aren’t either?"

Ebony let go a sigh before shaking her head.

"No I'm not from around here. I'm not even from this world. I'm from a place named Cocoon."

“Although if you need any other help finding someplace…I know the layout fairly well…I’m Repa by the way…Repa…Raines.”

Ebony was about to decline the offer, figuring she would be able to find it by herself somehow. Even is she had to conjure up some sort of spell to find it. But then, the name caught her off guard. She stood there, blinking once, twice, before regaining her composure.

"Raines? By any chance, would you be related to a man by the name of Joshua Raines?"

[Repa Raines]

Princess at Heart
Yeah I'm a Princess...but I'm no Damsel in Distress...Far from it.

Cocoon…why did that ring a bell? Something about it clicked, but Repa just couldn’t place her finger on why. Something was there though, and now that she couldn’t think of it, it was bound to bug her for the rest of the day. Great. When Ebony then had mentioned Josh…that’s when things started to click. So Ebony knew Josh eh? Well that was exciting.

“You know Josh? He’s my older brother. No wonder the world of Cocoon sounded so familiar.” She said with a slight smile. It was good to know he’d been staying out of…most trouble at least. But how did this girl know her brother? A prince…it was hard to imagine they knew eachother before, but then again, Repa didn’t know and or care what Josh did in his free time aside from working out for the military. “So you two friends or something? Because well…honestly I’m just curious.”

Wait a second, was this Ebony Blackwell? The girl Josh had crazed over and talked about all the time when Repa was home for those few days? Repa figured she better ask instead of assume.”Is your name…Ebony Blackwell?” She asked shifting her weight from foot to foot slowly but a little excitedly at the same time.

[Ebony Blackwell]

“You know Josh? He’s my older brother. No wonder the world of Cocoon sounded so familiar.”

Josh's sister, Repa. She remembered when she had first met him how he had said that he had come to Cocoon looking for his younger sister. This must be her. She looked at her for a second before turning away slightly, examining the architecture of the city. She didn't look like a princess. At all.

“So you two friends or something? Because well…honestly I’m just curious.”

Ebony shrugged her shoulders, glancing back at Repa, before turning her eyes back to the high-rising buildings.

"I guess you could say that."

The next question struck her surprised.

"Is your name...Ebony Blackwell?"

Ebony turned back around fully, to stare back at Repa. Josh must have told her, then. No one knew who she was exactly except the ones she chose to tell. She closed her eyes and grinned, before opening them again and looking back at Repa.

"Yes. I am Ebony Blackwell. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

[Repa Raines]

Princess at Heart
Yeah I'm a Princess...but I'm no Damsel in Distress...Far from it.

There was no doubt in Repa’s mind that Josh was looking for her at the time. And searching every world was apparently necessary, when it wasn’t. Repa noticed Ebony taking the occasional glance at her, but always looking away. Was something wrong? Maybe it was the fact that Repa wasn’t in a giant fluffy dress or something. Did Ebony know Josh was royalty? Or did she just not like Repa or something? “Ah. It’s good to know Josh has friends somewhere. Did he get in too much trouble while on Cocoon?” Trouble with who? Ebony, PSICOM, or Geoff? All three was probably the answer here. Though Repa didn’t know exactly what had happened on Cocoon with Geoff, it was a concern of hers.

So Repa was right. This was Ebony. She smiled wide and nodded some. “It’s very nice to meet you.” This girl seemed nice enough. Hopefully they would be friends or something. Wouldn’t Josh just flip when he heard that Repa and Ebony had finally met? As long as they weren’t mortal enemies that was good. “I was home a few days ago, and I’ll say this. Josh has done nothing but talk about you the whole time. He must really love you.” Repa smiled a little softer, wishing the best for this. Hoping it would work out, but something struck her to make her smile fade some. Where was this relationship between Ebony and Josh going to go? Was it going to go down the drain eventually? Or a typical happily ever after?

[Ebony Blackwell]

“Ah. It’s good to know Josh has friends somewhere. Did he get in too much trouble while on Cocoon?”

Ebony closed her eyes once more, remembering eveything that Josh had gotten her into. The bioweapon that PSICOM had sent, the virus, him leaving had left her in a state of depression, and then there was Geoff. She would have to say the depression and Geoff were the worst.

"I guess you could say that he got into some trouble. Nothing I couldn't handle of course."

“I was home a few days ago, and I’ll say this. Josh has done nothing but talk about you the whole time. He must really love you.”

Ebony just stood there dumbfounded for a few milliseconds before a large bright blush spread widely across her cheeks. She turned full away, putting a hand over her mouth, trying to hide the blush to the best of her ability, but failing miserably. She still wasn't used to the whole "love" thing, just yet.

"...I guess you could say that," she squeaked out once again, trying to regain her composure at least a little bit. Oh, the embarrassment.

[Repa Raines]

Princess at Heart
Yeah I'm a Princess...but I'm no Damsel in Distress...Far from it.

Of course Josh got himself in trouble. Typical soldier boy, always looking for danger. Repa just smiled and nodded at Ebony, good thing she was around to help Josh out of some tight spots. She didn’t know what events had all played out on Cocoon, all she knew is that Josh and Geoff had an encounter, and nothing more. It was hard to think of Repa, or anyone else she knew to be safe with that psycho running around. That raving lunatic about ready to blow someone’s face off with a pair of pistols. What a lovely thought. “Well it’s good to know he hasn’t gotten himself killed.” She grinned some before noticing ebony’s reaction to the whole love thing.

With a wide smile Repa figured Josh may or may not have popped out the ‘L’ word yet. Hopefully he had otherwise this may turn akward. But knowing Josh, he probably already did. Repa then thought of a question that she had to ask, for the sake of her brother’s well being. He was getting himself so wrapped around Ebony, it was all he talked about, Repa just needed to know one thing to keep her satisfied with all this. “….Do you love him?” It was a simple question, yet it could be hard to answer. What if she didn’t? At least not yet, what kind of response would Repa make? Tell Josh? Hell no. What could she do? Nothing, she just wanted to ease her mind here, to know that Josh wasn’t wasting his time on someone who wouldn’t love him back. It was a sibling thing, looking out for the other out of love, no matter how much you may deny it in public.


(sorry for the crappiness. I'm sick, so im not posting great lately. They'll get better i promise)

[Ebony Blackwell]

(Get some rest, and don't overexert yourself. I'll be fine waiting a couple of days. It won't kill me.)

After a few minutes, the blush had finally died down to a simple pink line across Ebony's nose. The scene in her bedroom after Josh ahd carried her back and healed her replayed in mind over and over again. Hey eyes were facing down at the ground and off to side. And then Repa asked that one simple question.

"...Do you love him?"

She didn't know how to reply at first. Say yes? Say no? Nod? Shake her head? This was Josh's sister. If she said yes, there was the possibility of her either hating her, embarrasing her, or jsut a combination of both. And there was the small chance that she could just simply accept it, be happy, and live on with life. Of course, if she said no, then she would be lieing, and Ebony didn't lie about serious matters. Only when it involved getting food, and other situations that she didn't like to speak about. So she just smiled and closed her eyes.

"Yeah. I do love him."

[Repa Raines]

Princess at Heart
Yeah I'm a Princess...but I'm no Damsel in Distress...Far from it.

The silence was…kind of a bad sign to Repa. Either Ebony was too shy to share the answer, or she was coming up with a way to say no. Hopefully it was the first option. Repa never wanted to see Josh hurt, and if Ebony didn’t love him back…after all the stuff Josh had talked about, well he would get hurt. It wasn’t Repa’s nature to butt in and what not, but this…would affect her as well. Of course another factor came into play, Repa had to approve of this girl, so maybe this was a good thing, meeting her here where Josh didn’t know. Though it seemed that Repa could get along with this girl just fine.

Finally the answer came out. So she did love him? That was great, so long as she meant it. Repa couldn’t help the smile that crossed her face then. Knowing her brother was in a good relationship and was exactly where he should be, it was nice to know that he had someone…who loved him too. “That’s all I wanted to know.” Repa said with a slight nod. “So have you traveled to Gaia for any particular reason? I mean, as you can see it’s not exactly the best tourist attraction out there…” That was true, Gaia was now crawling with just about everything, the good, the bad, and the ugly. PSICOM, Sephiroth and the remnants, heroes of all sorts and what not. It was like one big…amusement park with everything good and bad about it.

[Ebony Blackwell]

Ebony knew immediately that it was the right thing to say yes. She could feel the affirmation throughout her entire being after she had said yes to Repa's question. She turned ack around to face Repa, and listened quietly.

“So have you traveled to Gaia for any particular reason? I mean, as you can see it’s not exactly the best tourist attraction out there…”

A particular reason? Well, to be honest, Ebony was there to gather some more research on the L'Cie. She had been overhearing the PSICOM talking amongst themselves about a "foreign L'Cie", and of course, this made Ebony curious. So she sneaked into the PSICOM building and checked the computers. Gaia. That was the world where the L'Cie was located. SO she packed up a few little essentials and came to Gaia. Looking.

"Have you ever heard of the L'Cie?"

[Repa Raines]

Princess at Heart
Yeah I'm a Princess...but I'm no Damsel in Distress...Far from it.

Repa had a smile on her face. She was happy to finally meet the infamous Ebony Blackwell she had heard so much about, but as happy as she was now…once the word ‘L’Cie’ came out, her face fell into a blank almost worried stare. Oh she knew what a L’Cie was, in fact, her best friend was indeed a L’Cie, and it scared her to death. Trying not to look too weird or surprised Repa nodded some with a stuttered answer. “Y-yeah, I know of the L’Cie. They’re from Cocoon right? The Fal’Cie etc.” Repa did know what a L’Cie was before she found out Cloud was one, but it was always one of those things she never really believed in. Like some sort of myth.

Was Ebony with PSICOM or something? Of course, Repa wasn’t on the good side of PSICOM already, pulling a few stunts to get out of harms way…for her and others, but she didn’t really care, they weren’t after her really. They were after Cloud, at least she thought that now. “You looking for L’Cie or something? I hardly think they could’ve gotten all the way to this world…” She was trying to cover up Cloud’s tracks now, great. It was of course the least she could do. She then shrugged her shoulders. “But, what’s it to me?” She put back on a smile to ease her nerves, hopefully Ebony wouldn’t go looking for Cloud, if she even mentioned it, Repa would have to put herself in Ebony’s way.

[Ebony Blackwell]

Ebony's eyes narrowed as Repa started to stutter and lie. She remembered vividly that the computer said Gaia in the description of the foreign L'Cie.

“Y-yeah, I know of the L’Cie. They’re from Cocoon right? The Fal’Cie etc.”

Ebony crossed her arms and took on a serious look. Sorta of like when she was in the middle of research at points.

"Yes, L'Cie did originate from Cocoon. The Fal'Cie's being the main cause of them. Instead of fearing the L'Cie people should fear the Fal'Cie instead. They are the makers of this insanity that has plagued our world."

Ebony wasn't particularly afraid of the L'Cie. With the power that she possessed within her being, she could probably take them on in a fair fight. Not that she would anyway. No, it was the Fal'Cie that needed to be feared. The makers of the L'Cie, putting on their own brand among their servants and sending them out into hell.

“You looking for L’Cie or something? I hardly think they could’ve gotten all the way to this world…”

"In actuality, I've been overhearing from the PSICOM about a foreign L'Cie that presides in the world of Gaia. Thus, the main reason as to why I came to such a stoic world. I came to this world on search of some more research on the subject of the L'Cie. And in extension, to find the foreign L'Cie and answer some unanswered questions."

“But, what’s it to me?”

Ebony just grinned and shook her head. Really?

"I never asked about it involving you, Repa."

[Repa Raines]

Princess at Heart
Yeah I'm a Princess...but I'm no Damsel in Distress...Far from it.

This girl really knew her facts about the L’Cie, of course Repa did know some as well, from the stories she was told. “I’ve heard that only the Pulse L’Cie people fear, not the Sanctum L’Cie…” There was really only one possible solution in Repa’s mind. Take out the Fal’Cie, then none of this L’Cie madness would spread or continue. It was as simple as that, yet it wasn’t simple at all. The Fal’Cie kept Cocoon running and kept it alive, take those out, and well, disaster would hit. Oh well, not really her problem…at least directly.

So she wanted answers? Didn’t sound as bad as Repa thought. “So you want to find this L’Cie? Whoever he or she may be?” She said looking off to the side hoping to whatever god was out there that Cloud was steering clear of the PSICOM soldiers. Hopefully he was safe, maybe Ebony would know a way to help- NO! Cloud trusted Repa not to say anything, she couldn’t betray that trust. “Oh, sorry, I was talking to myself there for a moment. I wasn’t really asking you what it was to me. Just…thinking aloud I guess.” She shrugged her shoulders before thinking it was time to change the subject. “So do you have a place to stay while you’re here in Gaia?”