[FF7][SC] Star Flower

No echo.Wolves are not a problem, but those dragons, you don’t know how worried we are..." Hiccuped, and finally smacked his lips to reflect, "Can you solve it? "

"……can."

"Use that knife? I don't think so. You can't even cut through the dragon's skin. You have to use a gun..."

Until Mr. Lockhart was drunk, Angel didn't find out about the blonde girl, and the topic went somewhere. He might really not have the talent for clichés.The most direct way is to search one by one, but Angel didn't want to make a big fuss, and didn't know what else to do for a while, so he had to pass the time in the store doing nothing.

That's it?

... It's not impossible.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the youngest daughter of the Lockhart family tiptoeing out.

"Tifa, are you going out to play?"

"Shhh!" Tifa nervously raised her index finger, her puckered lips were so fleshy and cute.Noticing that her drunken father showed no sign of waking up, she waved to Angel and motioned to go outside to talk.Children still don't understand what it means to be a special soldier, and Angel can't refuse his straightforward attitude.

"I'm going to feed the cat." Tifa said seriously.

Feed the cat?With a basket of food?Angel squatted down, "Can I go and see?"

Tifa was startled, and rolled her big eyes a few times, "You look so fierce, you will scare the cat away."

This lie really made Angel dumbfounded.But he understands that children always have their own little secrets, and if it's not a bad thing, there's no need to expose it. "I found a litter of wolves by the stove." The girl's eyes lit up, and Angel smiled gently. He knew what could make a country kid fall in love. "If you let me follow, I'll take you to pick out wolf cubs later."

"...Daddy will be angry."

"He won't know. If you don't tell me, I won't tell you either."

"But you're going to tell him about feeding the cat?"

"I promise not, besides, I'll be leaving in two days." Angel raised his hand, "If your father finds out that I'm going out with you, he will be the first to beat me to death."

This statement made the little girl giggle. Her happy smile is brighter than a sunflower in late summer. It is hard to imagine that a rough guy like Lockhart can have such a beautiful daughter. There will be such a little princess.

"Let's go, don't procrastinate, it just happens to be on the way."

Simple small houses are lined up along the mountain, and Tifa leads Angel to the one on the edge, which means going along the way.

Tifa nimbly got through the fence, Angel raised his eyebrows, feeling that it was inappropriate to interrupt rashly.He stopped outside the fence and watched from a distance.An ordinary house, the nursery is overgrown with weeds, but there are strips of dried meat and furs hanging under the eaves. It looks like a hunter in good condition, maybe a little rough.

"Aren't you coming in?"

"I was not invited."

"Hmm... Cloud shouldn't mind... maybe..." Tifa's eyes wandered for a while, then suddenly lit up, "If you split the firewood, he will be very happy!"

Sound like a cheapskate?

Angel shrugged and decided to bother.

Things are far more complicated than he imagined.

When he saw the sick woman in bed, Angel's position on the family immediately slipped from "rich" to "barely getting by". There was a tinge of respect.In any case, the man deserves respect for not abandoning his sick wife.

While Tifa was putting the food on the table, Angel briefly checked Ms. Strife's condition. She was poisoned by a high concentration of Moko, and there was no other problem.He had seen patients like this, and the use of chelation agents might be able to save them when they were first exposed, but they would be useless if they were too long.Sadly, Ms Strife seems to fall into the latter category.

"Is there a girl in this family, about your age?" Angel suddenly asked.He noticed the woman's haggard blond hair and asked hopelessly.

Tifa responded confusedly, "Girl?"

"It's nothing." Angel smiled, "I'm sorry." He held the woman's hand, and the soft light of the healing magic flickered, hoping it would make her feel better.

"Wow..." Tifa blinked her garnet-like eyes, attracted by the magic, then flattened her mouth suspiciously after a while, "Has there been any changes?"

Angel put down his skinny hands and shook his head regretfully. "I'm sorry..." He said sorry to many people, when he handed pensions and medals into the hands of aging parents, when he had to order his soldiers to die heroically, when he obeyed the orders of the company to take those lives.He's used to doing the best he can, and not being bothered by things beyond his abilities. "Have you been taking care of her?"

"When there are many customers, you can bring food over, like today, but you can't usually..." Tifa lowered her head in frustration.If Mom was still around, Dad wouldn't be angry about this kind of thing.

Just like what Angel thought, life is not easy, there is no reason why anyone must be responsible for whom, and there is a man in this family.He rubbed Tifa's little head, "You have done a good job, already better than many people. This is the right thing to do, no matter what others say, you can be proud of yourself." He thought for a while, and then Said, "I'll leave some money for you, so you don't have to sneak around when you want to 'feed the cat', how about buying it?"

He didn't know if helping this family directly would cause some bad results.And more importantly, he understands that he may be able to help such a family for a while, but it is impossible to really change their fate, there are too many...Although Angel still wants to help as much as possible, maybe after Claude comes back, they can talk.He would come back soon, even if he gave up the prey he might get—otherwise this woman wouldn't be taken care of so well.

Being bedridden is always an inconvenience.He didn't smell bad, and there was no bed sore on the woman's body. Although she was skinny, her muscles hadn't shrunk, so she must have been massaged frequently.

Angel sighed and decided to chop firewood in the yard for a while.

When the sun-dried wormwood was lit in the evening, Angel's worries rose with the white smoke.He had given the order to stand by before he came, so he wasn't worried about the situation on the soldier's side, but Mr. Strife who couldn't wait was a little bit concerned.Genesis keeps saying that he's nosy and that one day he'll get hurt because of it, but...he just can't do nothing.

After standing up and moving his stiff joints, Angel easily jumped over the fence that was one person tall, and walked towards the virgin forest on the back mountain.

Bloody smell.

The smell of blood hidden under the miasma of rotting leaves, chasing them will soon find something.Maybe the hunter shot his prey, maybe there was a fight between the beasts, but Angel didn't want the worst.He quickened his pace, and then saw a scene that surprised him from a distance——

The child who stabbed him last night was sitting on the edge of the big tree covered in blood, with his head bowed, not knowing whether he was dead or alive.

Terrible.

Angel was stunned for a moment, then ran almost immediately, the magic stone was also ready, and a healing spell was ready to go.The attack of wild animals, the trap of hunters, it doesn't matter what it is, as long as he is alive, he can save it.However, as he approached, his head, which could no longer see its original color, trembled, and then a pair of hostile blue eyes came into his sight.

Very vigilant, sharp eyes, not at all like a child's eyes, but after seeing the person clearly, there seems to be some changes.Angel noticed that the child's gaze was slightly off, as if he was staring at the hilt of the sword that was higher than his shoulder... frightened?Without hesitation, he took off the Destruction Sword and inserted it deeply into the ground, hoping that she wouldn't make her injury worse because of her disturbance. "Don't be afraid, I—"

Then the kid jumped up and ran away, which was similar to the monster that ran away last night.

"..."

Really, there are really no words to describe the mood of the poor countryman at this moment, but there is no doubt that Angel is eager to grab her and give her a good spanking.

Or two meals.

It would be a hell of a distance to let her run away.The special forces shortened the distance between the two of them effortlessly, grabbed her with a big hand, carefully avoided possible daggers or other attacks, and then firmly countered her hands.The physical gap between the two parties was too great, and Angel didn't even use any skills, and controlled the girl in his arms like a chicken cub.

"Calm down! I'm just looking at where you're hurt!" The free hand quickly checked her body, no broken ribs, no bleeding wounds... nothing?

"It's not my blood." The girl didn't struggle after being caught, and spoke to Angel for the first time, in a very soft and childish voice, "Under the tree, my prey."

Hearing this, Angel was taken aback, only to realize that the half-big wild boar covered by the tree trunk was in the blind spot of sight just now, but this only made the whole thing even more bizarre.Looking at the wild boar and then at the girl, he felt his ribs kicked through the glove, such a little guy, and such a big wild boar?

That is a beast that can overwhelm a grown man.

"I'll let you go, don't run around, let's take it easy, okay?"

He nodded slightly.

Angel didn't have much hope for this, but it's not a problem to hold on to it all the time, so he tentatively let go.That's fine, no messing around. "Is that your prey?" He couldn't help asking again.

Still nodding.

Angel had nothing to say.He watched the girl's hair soaked in blood into locks and strands of soft hair, and her face that was so embarrassed that she couldn't see it. He held back for a while, and finally let out a regretful sigh from the depths of his chest.Of course she wanted to run away, she stabbed him the moment she met him yesterday, and now she might be terrified of being caught by the victim.But Angel is used to finding out the cause and effect before getting angry. He has many things to ask, but now is not the time.

"I'm looking for someone, we'll talk later." He walked back and lifted the Destroyer Sword to put it on his back again, then folded it back, picked up the dirty girl without saying a word, "Don't move around!" He yelled in a low voice, feeling that the destruction sword was being moved.

"Put me down."

Angel silently pressed his shaking head.

"My wild boar." An anxious voice sounded from the shoulder, the struggle was not obvious, and it seemed a little afraid, "it will be eaten by wolves."

Still thinking about wild boars!Angel was a little annoyed. At this time, he stayed in the forest smelling of blood, as if he was afraid that the wolves would not find him.His lips twitched. This kind of thing should be blamed on adults rather than children. He suppressed his anger and said coldly: "It's better than you being eaten."

"Who are you looking for?" He asked restlessly, as if he was still trying to save his prey.

"Cloud Strife."

The name strangely quieted the little one.They were so close, Angel wouldn't miss a moment of violent heartbeat, abnormal reaction?He weighed the little guy's body, he could barely feel the weight, and he felt a little more disgusted with the unreliable parents in his heart, "Know him? He is from your village."

"...Why are you looking for Claude?" The tone became cautious and suspicious.

They were definitely not just acquainted, Angel even began to suspect that her appearance had something to do with Strife. "If you see him, you'd better tell me quickly, Strife has sick people waiting for him to go back." Scrape the dirt off the boots and the roots of the trees.In any case, he just wanted to find someone quickly, and then—

"I am Claude." Claude Strife patted Angel's back lightly, "Can you let me down? I want to bring the prey home."

Then what?

The young man walked a few steps, and suddenly stopped, holding the girl's armpit with both hands and raised it up to stare at it for a while.Oh no... wait... no... "Are you a boy?"

The contempt flashed away in the blue eyes, it must not be an illusion, but it immediately turned into a blank expression, "Didn't you touch it?"

Now Angel just hopes his jaw hasn't dropped.

The young man spent some time trying to make his expression not so stupid, but finally gave up, and could only quietly watch the small figure in front of him nimbly walking through the tangled vegetation.There are too many things I want to ask, and I don't know how to ask because of the messy entanglement.When he came back to his senses, he had been taken deeper into the forest.

A few black shadows that looked like lynxes disappeared in a flash. Claude squatted down to check the other half of the wild boar, and fiddled with the internal organs that were taken out earlier. It was no longer edible.The fleshy part was not bitten too badly, maybe it can be processed and brought back.So Claude looked back at Angel, the special soldier was carrying the original half wild boar on his shoulders.

"If you bring it back for me, I can give you four...one eighth."

"No, no need, you keep it for yourself." Angel replied subconsciously, and then relaxed a little because of the childish stinginess in the other party's words, and then felt a little astringent.When Tifa asked him to chop wood, he didn't think too much about it. Now it seems that the child is not strong enough, which is probably why he only brought half a pig.If he didn't come, I don't know if Claude will make another trip at night-maybe this assumption itself is wrong, it will definitely be.

Thinking of this, Angel could only sigh more deeply, unable to speak out whether to question or blame.Half-compulsively, he took the knife from the child's hand, and neatly began to cut off the rotten flesh.

Claude tilted his head to look at the young man for a while, then stood up to recover the trap.

That was a very simple trap, and Angel had seen it before.The wire was wound several times to leave a living hole, and it was fixed in the air on the only way of the wild boar. Once the prey got into it, it would shrink, and the more it struggled, the harder it would be to escape.Although the layout is simple, it is not easy to find caves and observe living habits.

I don't know how much I have suffered before mastering this profession.Angel found himself wanting to sigh again.

With the help of adults, especially a strong commando, everything is easier.Angel took over most of the physical work, and repaired the damaged parts of the house, but he didn't finish it. He planned to stay here for a few days to continue the work.

It's easy, and it's been a long time since Claude is done with everything.Hungry and sweaty, Angel sat on a tree stump and opened the PHS.The signal in the mountains is very poor, and it has not been used, so there is still more than half of the remaining power, and the white light lights up the darkness in the yard.When he saw 23:02 next to the battery level, he was in a bad mood.

"Can't you sleep at this time every day?" He didn't look up, but asked Claude who had just walked out of the house.

The boy had already been washed—you can't get into the house with blood—and even though it was just a cold rinse, it got a bit dirty again after all the fuss.He didn't answer Angel's question, but handed the large bowl and kettle to Angel, who took it for no apparent reason.

It's black bread and jerky.

Naturally, Angel, who was born in poverty, would not dislike this familiar food, so he casually picked up bread and gnawed on it. "Hey, I've helped you a lot, is that all?" He looked at the child with a serious face, and tried to lighten the atmosphere with a joke, "What about one-eighth?"

"Didn't you say no?" Claude raised his head sharply.He didn't talk much, but Angel seemed to gradually know what topics would make him talk.

Not sure if Claude was unhappy, Angel tentatively asked: "You have already hunted a lot, why don't you eat better?"

Claude frowned and stared at Angel for a while.Angel didn't change his face, but for some reason, he felt a little uncomfortable being looked at by such a pair of eyes.If friends were present, they would probably not hesitate to ridicule jokes like "Shinra's conscience is at work".

"Isn't this enough to eat?" Claude's voice was a little uncertain, enough to be heard.

...So it was just a thoughtful expression?

Angel suddenly realized that this child was a little different from what he thought.

"Wait." Before Angel could stop him, the boy ran back to the house.

When he came out again, he was carrying a rattan basket, a wild boar leg protruding from the edge of the rattan basket, and a ball of dried moss was in his arms.Angel immediately understood what he wanted to do. He wanted to tell him that he would go back to the hotel to ask for some food, and the army also had dry food, but after thinking about it, it would be okay to leave some money for him later, so he started to help light the fire.

He didn't want to go back so soon, and he still had something to say.

The dry wood crackled and twisted in the flames, and Angel took over the work of grilling. He held the fire stick and pitchfork with one hand to secure the game steadily, and with the other hand he poked the fire with a wooden stick.Originally, this kind of environment should be very suitable for heart-to-heart talks. During the training and picnic, the soldiers can talk nonsense enough to expose the three-dimensionality of their girlfriends. Although Angel didn't plan to go too deep, at least talking about the gods is enough, isn't it?

But Claude sat far away from the fire, with his face buried in his knees, looking isolated from the world.

Angel was taken aback.Speaking of it, flames can drive away wild animals, so they can't be used when hunting, but why doesn't he use a torch to ensure his safety after he catches them?

"Are you... afraid of fire?"

What a great opening!Angel threw down the wooden stick and scratched his hair in frustration, the dandruff was about to come out.On weekdays, Angel is very fond of children, which can be seen from Tifa's attitude, but Claude is different from ordinary children, who just understand things immediately when they see them, Angel is not sure how to speak is more appropriate.

He could actually speak directly, directly asking why the boy appeared in the Moko Stove and why he committed the murder deliberately. As long as Angel wanted to, he could be arrested for "endangering public safety", or he could be charged with any other crime.But he couldn't do this, first because of the glory of the warrior, and now because of Claude himself.

He couldn't do this to the kid, life was hard enough on him.

"I'm sorry." The thin voice drifted in the evening wind.Angel turned back immediately, almost missing the inaudible whisper.The boy still had his head buried, his hands folded in front of his knees, "You want to ask about last night, right? That's my fault, my problem... I'm just a little scared..." The hand holding his arm tightened and then loosened , breathing became short of breath, "I'm very scared...someone broke in suddenly at night, carrying such a big sword...I'm sorry...do whatever you want..."

So it's my fault?Shouldn't you run away under normal circumstances?

However, Angel did not question this point. People often make illogical choices under extreme emotions.As a result, he was spared irreparable damage—a well-planned assassination would not target the knee—and even escaped his inexplicable abnormal state, which would be great if it was really a coincidence.Then another question was born, "Have you been staying in the Mako furnace?"

"...in winter, it's very warm there."

"It's summer now, and you should stay at home." Angel said seriously, turning over the roasted pork leg, "Listen, Moko is highly poisonous, don't go near it again." If you don't want to be friendly Like your mother, he didn't say that.

Claude said nothing.

Angel is still a little worried, this is not a question that can be fooled, "Did you hear that, Claude?"

Still no answer.

Angel picked up the barbecue and poked it into the basket, and walked over to see what was going on. "Claude?" The boy raised his head bluntly, looking for the source of the sound with dazed eyes, looking sleepy.He rubbed his eyes, and finally fell down in the grass, curled up into a small ball.

He looks really small.

"Eat something before going to sleep, Claude, wake up?" Angel knelt down and brushed the boy's hair away, and patted his cheek lightly.He knew it was too tired, but it was not a good thing to fall asleep hungry, "The barbecue is ready to eat, get up and try it?"

"..."

"What?" Angel moved closer.

"That... keep it... for winter..."

Angel's hands froze.

He felt sick, rising from his stomach, and sinking heavily to the bottom.It's guilt.He realized that he had just joked about something the kid cared about so much, threatening him, even hurting him unconsciously, while he was humble and struggling to live.

He said he was very scared.

In an instant, the heartache flooded.