#Mostly because Aerith but also Cloud is just a big dingus and I love him xD

[talesofourworlds]

"Prob'ly," Raven agreed. He tried his best to keep his condition to himself, only bringing it up if it was actually relevant. Such as in this case, when he was pretty sure that somehow those people had figured him out. He wasn't sure how they would have, but the best guess he had was that the glow had been showing just enough to give him away. Which was annoying. There wasn't a lot he could do about it, though, short of hoping for the end. Which he didn't want, he knew, despite everything.

"Thanks, but honestly? I ain't anywhere near as skilled as my friend was," he confessed. "I only picked up the bow in the first place case'a her. Before that, I wasn't too different from ya. Just good at swingin' a sword." Which he also hadn't really wanted to do in the first place, but... that was a story for another time. Instead, Raven focused on what Zack had said. His first response was a tilt of his head.

"Ma-tear-E-uh?"

"Safe ta say ya lost me there," he admitted. But the big questions came next. Raven had kind of expected them, but honestly? The most he could do was shrug.

"If I knew the 'why' of it, I think I wouldn't feel the way I do about bein' like this in the first place," he said. "As fer what happens if somethin' goes wrong... dunno." A pretty indifferent response, Raven knew, but that was honestly how he felt. If the end did come for him in the form of something happening to his blastia, there were worse ways he could go. A blatant contradiction to the idea that he did want to keep living, but what else could he say.

"Friend of mine back home is a blastia expert, so I guess she'd likely be the best person ta turn to if somethin' did go wrong. But I'm guessin' she's literal worlds away if I'm all the way out here. So... guess I'd be stuck. But hey, so long as I'm real careful I don't think we got anything to worry about."

"I think it's like that everywhere." Aerith didn't know for sure, but she could fathom a guess. "Isn't it?" She doubted that Raven advertised his condition very often, not unless the situation required it.

Uncertainty bred discomfort, things that people didn't understand, meant that they wouldn't know how to deal with dilemmas that cropped up, or counter things they may not be able to handle on their own. It was only natural to be cautious around the unknown.

It was just sad when the unknown was a little girl--

Or a man that couldn't help how he ended up.

Whatever their situations, they all deserved a chance, right?

"You're a skilled archer, that was more than luck! Have a more steady hand and patience than I have." Zack snorted, patting at the hilt of the sword at his back. "This is about all I can do. Swing big things~" Then again, swinging big things did involve some measure of effort, and ultimately, it might hold some future repercussions, but it certainly didn't feed on his life.

"Not quite like materia then...." He frowned. "Why would someone do that to you? And if the guy who installed it isn't around, what happens if it... malfunctions or something?"