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Wear Tear and Rust

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Life was going as it did any other day for Angeal in the lifestream. There he hung out with all his friends and family, including Zack who had talked about all his endeavours since Angeal died. One day, Angeal started to feel concerned. The concern? He was worried about his sword, the one first entrusted to Zack when he died until his apprentice passed it onto Cloud Strife.That day, Angeal rose from the lifestream and up to the surface where he ended up in the sector 7 slums under the plate. In the renowned bar, Seventh Heaven, Angeal first noted the sight of Cloud flirting with the barmaid, Tifa Lockhart. Tifa was a very beautiful woman, Angeal thought, it was no wonder Cloud would flirt with her. By her reaction, Angeal guessed that she didn't mind Cloud's behaviour towards her, even going as far as giggling.What he noticed next was that the bar was a mess, with slime and grime everywhere. There was dirt on the floor, and the dishes and cups were yet to be washed. What gave Angeal a gasp of absolute horror, however, was that the buster sword, the sword Zack entrusted to Cloud, was full of wear, tear, and rust. What a waste, Angeal thought. In that instant, the SOLDIER gave a loud roar of fury.In the bar, it felt as though there was an earthquake going on. The mugs were clinking, the ground was shaking, and the plates were rattling. In an instant, Cloud jumped over the counter to grab Tifa, pulling her under the table where he knew they'd be safe. The shaking soon stopped though Tifa was still breathing heavily."You ok?" Cloud asked."Y-yeah," Tifa said with slight amusement, "That was scary...""I've seen worse," Cloud said cooly as the two got out from the counter. What met them when they came out from under the counter was a furious roar, and moments later, the faded figure of a man arose from under the floor. The man was tall with long dark hair reaching down to his shoulders, and a goatee. His eyes were the colour of mako, and he was dressed as a first-class SOLDIER. He must be a member, Cloud thought."Grar!" the man raged furiously, "Do you think that just because your friend gave you my sword that you can treat it however you want?!""What...?" Cloud asked dumbly, "What are you talking about? Who are you?""Angeal Hewley!" the man said, "Zack's mentor!""Who's Zack?" Cloud asked."Augh, never mind!" Angeal said, "Use brings about wear, tear, and rust, and that's a real waste!""What do you mean?" Cloud asked.Instead of giving a straight answer, Angeal pointed towards the buster sword, covered in grime and green moss as though it hadn't been cleaned in days. Cloud started to panic, as he looked back to the crimson face of Angeal marching towards him. Angeal then grabbed Cloud by the collar of his turtle neck, placing his forehead at his face."In life, that was my sword," Angeal said, "I trusted Zack when he gave it to you. Turns out, he gave it to the wrong man. I'm about to teach you a lesson!"Tifa tried to push Angeal off of Cloud, only to realise she couldn't touch him. Cloud panicked even more before suddenly the door to the bar opened wide. There, there stood the PowerWash Simulator dude, dressed in his cleaners outfit. In his hand was his pressure cleaner, equipped with a water tank."Stand aside!" He said, walking into the bar, "I'm gonna get this place cleaned up."The PowerWash Simulator dude activated his water gun and around the bar, mud and grime flew in all directions as Cloud and Tifa once again hid under the counter, avoiding the dirty ammunition of the war between water and grime. Angeal, however, was stationary as he watched the bar being cleaned. After the bar itself was clean, the PowerWash Simulator dude went to the buster sword, covered in muck. At first, Angeal panicked, knowing that the gun was high pressure, carrying with it the risk of breaking the sword. However, once the gun was turned on, it did its job of wiping off all wear, tear and rust from the buster sword, and Angeal sighed in relief.Once the cleaning was done, the hose was turned off, and the PowerWash Simulator dude began to pack up."Wait, you forgot the dishes!" Tifa called, "And the cups!""I'll leave them to you," The PowerWash Simulator dude said, "If I tried to clean them, they'd break on impact, and I don't think your customers would be very happy about that. Not to mention how much I'd owe you.""I'm happy to clean up," Tifa said, "Thanks for cleaning up the bar, and Cloud's sword.""No worries," he said, "See you soon..."As the PowerWash Simulator dude left, Angeal approached Cloud, still with a cross face."That was your first warning," Angeal said to Cloud, "If it happens again, you'll be sorry. Do you understand?""Y-yes, Angeal..." Cloud said with a panic, "I promise to do better next time.""Good," Angeal said, "Remember, use brings about wear, tear and rust, and that's a real waste."Angeal turned away from Cloud and Tifa straight for the door. Tifa panicked and tried to stop him from walking into it, but soon, they were over when he walked straight through it and disappeared."Want me to help with the dishes?" Cloud asked Tifa."Thank you Cloud, that would be great!" Tifa said.The two turned around to the sink where the two started to wash the dishes, all whilst listening to the ambience of running water. Cloud watched Tifa's hands which still trembled in fear."You ok...?" Cloud asked."Ghosts aren't really my thing," Tifa said, as she rubbed the soapy water onto the plate.Suddenly the door opened again. This time, it was Barret who came in, along with Biggs, Wedge and Jessie."Hey, what the hell's goin' on here...!" Barret yelled before he saw the pristine condition of the bar."Oh, hey Barret," Tifa said, "Cloud's just helping me out with cleaning the bar.""Wow, Cloud, you really outdid yourself!" Biggs said in praise."Yeah, it looks amazing!" Wedge joined in."You should become Tifa's cleaner boy!" Jessie chirped, "Well, we'll be downstairs talking about the mission if you need us. Have fun washing the dishes."With this, Barret activated the pinball machine which played its jingle before the four members of AVALANCHE went down into the basement. A moment later, Tifa turned around to see Marle enter the building."Well, I'll be," Marle said, "Just look at how hard you two are working. Tifa, dear, you should really take a break after this."Tifa turned around with a slight surprise to see the elderly woman, "Oh, Marle!" she said, "No, that's alright, Cloud and I are fine just washing the dishes together.""Are you sure?" Marle asked, "It looks like you've worked your bones off. Come by the hotel once you're both done. You'll need a rest.""Really, Marle, we're alright!" Tifa said."At least that merc's put himself to good use," Marle replied, "Just make sure he stays that way."With this, Marle left, closing the door behind her. After the dishes were all cleaned, Cloud and Tifa put them, along with the cups away. With some stretches, Tifa looked to Cloud's side with a smile."Thanks for the help, Cloud," Tifa said, "Hey, do you want something to drink? Oh, and some lunch as well?""Sure," Cloud said, "I'll just make sure my sword's safe.""Better not get any wear, tear, or rust on it," Tifa said, kissing Cloud's cheek, "Thanks Cloud."Cloud blushed red, as he scratched the back of his head with a nervous chuckle before he left the room to put the buster sword back into his apartment. As he left, Tifa went to the kitchen where she got out the ingredients for lunch.In the lifestream, Zack panicked, biting his nails and shaking his legs. He thought of all the possible scenarios in which Cloud could have found himself with Angeal, of which none were desirable. When he turned around, the SOLDIER reappeared, with a stern look on his face and a calm walk."Angeal, please don't tell me you didn't do anything!" Zack cried."Don't worry, Zack, I didn't do anything too brash," Angeal said, "I only yelled at him, and it was all over once that power cleaner came in. He's washing dishes with his girlfriend now.""Angeal, I love you man!" Zack said, hugging his mentor, "Thank you for not killing my friend.""Zack, relentless as a little puppy," Angeal said, "I won't be so gentle next time."From then on, Angeal closely monitored everything Cloud did with the buster sword, and as per his warning, Cloud never gave any wear, tear or rust to it again. Until...

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