A/N: Originally a one-shot named for the first chapter, it was updated twice, and subsequently lost for nearly two years. I recently dug it up, edited it (With some help from Antlan87) for better grammar, and here you have it. Challenge on the third chapter. ~VLU

This author does not own FFVIII. The characters and all are owned by Square.

It's odd how she treats me. The rest fear and hate me. To them, I am an embodiment of everything Seifer accomplished as a Sorceress' Knight; the attack on Balamb, capturing the city below, the entire war between Galbadia and Esthar. Though that last one would have happened without our help anyway.

The most I can do is shrug and bark at them as they pass and stare at me, it's not like I never expected this after all. I knew full well what I was getting into when I chose to join Balamb Garden again, when I decided to finish my training and education after the President pardoned me. It's harder than I thought, I'll admit that, with my brother settling down in some quiet fishing village, and Seifer serving his sentence in D-District. But I'm not totally alone.

She speaks to me. In the hallways as I pass, at lunch when she moves away from her own friends to sit in my lonely little corner. It's odd, but not unpleasant. I do enjoy her company, she was always the one person I looked up to besides Seifer during my original stay in Balamb. Reserved but resourceful, she easily passed everyone's expectations when she became the youngest instructor here, the youngest SeeD for that matter. She also proved to be kind, gentle, and caring. Which, I guess, would explain why she acts the way she does around me. See? Nothing special, she does this for everyone.

I can't honestly tell myself that though. I have to keep hoping that the subtle way she hides her blushes under the guise of shifting her glasses is reserved solely for me. Or that her childish giggle, and those dimples I had never even noticed before, are her way of flirting with me.

Everyone fantasizes about her, having her in some way or another. Though I can tell by her demeanor that she's never acted upon any of those fantasies. Me? I just want… I want to be around her I guess, and I want her to be around me. I want her to know me the way I'd like to know her. I'd like to see her whenever I'm feeling lonely, whenever I need someone who doesn't hate me, whenever I feel the sudden urge for someone to hold me.

Yes, the big bad beast needs a hug now and then, even if I managed to knee Raijin whenever he tried. I enjoyed it, but he didn't have to make such a spectacle of it every time. I bet she's so much softer than Raijin though, even if an Adamantoise is softer… I bet she would put my pillows to shame; skin like silk sheets, lips as delicate as rose petals.

Perhaps I should get her one? A rose, that is, not a pillow. No, I'd need to know without a doubt first. And my mind is full of nothing but doubts and fantasies.

Still, I had a test for her earlier today, and she passed with flying colors. It was during class, my second of the day, her third. She has a habit of glancing across the classroom after every question, she has a habit of searching for my gaze too, and holding it. Just a little thing I've noticed, seeing as how I stare at her every minute of her class. I do seem to lose track of time when she's around, don't I?

Anyway, today was no different. She sought out my gaze, and I met hers, that sharp ice-blue that sends shivers down my spine. She may think otherwise, but I caught the subtle widening of her eyes, the lump in her throat, an expression I had, until then, likened to fear. Perhaps she does fear me though.

And then, to test her, I pursed my lips and looked to my work, putting on my best frown. When I looked up again, she was back at her work, but her brows were scrunched, her own lips drawn into a tight frown. Until then, she had been perfectly happy. Did this mean something?

So, I moved onto the next stage of my test, waiting patiently, biding my time until her next question. It came up a bit later, something about Grats that I didn't quite catch, and there she went again. We locked eyes seconds later, my one holding hers again, only this time I smiled, and did my best to loosen my expression. It's not quite as easy as it sounds, when you've lived your entire life scowling, but I tried, and she rewarded me for it.

Her smiles are dazzling, with teeth or without. Her teeth are like the finest porcelain, and the contrast to her lips is so fine they can't help but stand out. And they are beautiful, almost perfect. I could die happy if I could have them for just one second. But today there were no teeth, just the dimples that made her look almost her age. They make her look so youthful, so… Cute. Yes, that's the perfect word, cute. Her eyes, even her skin, seems to shimmer when she smiles, but that may well be in my imagination.

But that was two out of two. She responded to my expression, my feelings, the same way I respond to hers. I may have never told this to anyone, not including the fact that I don't speak to people, but she does make my day. Her smiles get me through all the jeers and taunts anyone else can throw at me, and the days she's down can darken even the brightest of days. Yes, I know all about her depression, her tendency to take everything far to seriously, involved in it or not. The only reason I act like I'm trying in these courses I know by heart is for her. If anything, I need to give her that precious feeling of success, like saying that yes, you did turn my life around. Yes, you will make a proper girl out of me.

Hmm? What? Someone's at the door. No, I don't know who it is, I'll go check.

Oh my…

"Would you like to go get something to eat, Fujin?"

"Err… Um-"

"Well?"

"BE DELIGHTED… QUISTIS."

There's that smile again.