RESURRECTION - Rebirth of a Foe
By: Moomba
Carbuncle25@hotmail.com
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Chapter One - A New Day Has Dawned
After tossing and turning many times in his sleep, Squall Leonhart finally woke up to the chirping of birds from the near by Balamb forest and a gentle breeze floating into his room. He stared for a brief moment at his bedroom ceiling, allowing what thoughts he willed to come into his mind. So much had happened in his life, so many new experiences - he was still a teenager for goodness sake! The memory of Ultimecia's plot and her fate for mankind were still firmly etched into his mind. And the great irony of it all: he wore the greatest conflict on his face. One that couldn't possibly be erased, and one that could ever be forgotten. Scarred for life was what it was, and Squall had Seifer to thank for.
The so-called 'training session' that he and Seifer had had that day was the turning point of his life. Whenever Squall would look into a mirror, it wasn't his face he saw - it was Seifer's. He had been taunting Squall as usual - and the big question Squall wanted to know from himself was why didn't he walk away? What did he want to prove? Why did he have to rise to the challenge? But that was just it - there was no need to rise to the challenge. He didn't have to fight at all.
Dr. Kadowaki: "That Seifer…. Won't listen to anyone. Why don't you ignore him?"
Squall: "I can't just run away."
Dr. Kadowaki: "You wanna be cool, huh? Well don't get hurt in the process."
Maybe his life was controlled by destiny, after the many times he had convinced his mind that he had control of his own life.
The knock on the door startled Squall and jolted him back to reality. The voice from the other side was faint but then called out to him louder when he did not respond.
"Yoo-hoo! Squall? Are you up? Squall? Hey, are you OK in there?"
"Fine Selphie," Squall reluctantly answered, opening the door to his room.
"Have you been thinking again?" the spunky young girl demanded from him wagging an accusing finger. "Y'know it's no good to be thinking all the time. C'mon, I've heard that there's a long queue for the hotdogs!" she said, pulling him by the hand along the corridor and out of the dormitories.
"S'up Squall!" Zell's loud voice called out to him. Instructor Quistis Trepe followed behind the martial arts expert and shook her head with a small smile. She and Zell had been up early for a short training session and had just left the training arena. Zell ran up to the other Balamb Garden SeeDs - both of whom were very close friends of his, whilst Quistis took her time and walked.
"Where've you been?" Selphie asked when Zell caught up with them.
"In the training arena with Instructor Trepe," Zell replied. "Where are you two heading off to?"
"Me and Squall are going to the cafeteria for breakfast. Hotdogs are back on the menu," Selphie replied.
"What?! Man, nobody told me about that. Hey, you did that on purpose. You deliberately didn't tell me so that you would get them all for yourself!" Zell said, stamping his foot childishly. "I'll beat you to the line! Haha! Last one there is a sorry Chocobo!" Speeding in the direction of the cafeteria, Zell left Squall standing next to a flustered Selphie.
"Zell, you come back here, now! That is not fair!" Selphie shouted, running after him. "I'll save you one Squall..." her voice dying away as she rounded the corner.
"Aren't you going to run after them?" Quistis' voice said Squall when finally caught up with him at the entrance of the dormitories.
"No," was Squall's short reply.
"Squall, have you something on your mind?" Quistis asked as the two of them walked together at a slower pace to the cafeteria, passing other Balamb Garden students as they went.
Yeah, I have loads of things in my mind. So much, I don't know where to start or how to sort them out. I think about Seifer all the time. That grin of his and the brash and egotistical manner he'd carry wherever he went. Then I think about Rinoa. How she brought a new meaning to the word 'life' and how, from the moment we first met at the graduation ball here at Balamb, she turned my world full of discipline and rules upside down. Her carefree spirit, her voice calling my name...
"Squall?" Quistis' voice broke into his thoughts.
"What?" he said, bringing a hand to his forehead. Selphie was right: too much thinking was no good for him. But what else can I do? How can I stop these thoughts from interfering with my mind? Seifer and Rinoa, their faces. It's driving me insane!!
"I take it you want to be alone right now, Squall," Quistis said quietly. "Remember, we're all here for you. If you have something on your mind, tell us, OK?"
This is stupid
, Squall thought watching his instructor go. I'm reminiscing about the past, and at the same time driving away my closest friends in the present. I'm just so totally messed up. Sitting on one of the benches inside the Garden, Squall sat in his brooding position - the only way he ever sat: his head bent low and his arms resting on his legs.The familiar chimes of the Garden's intercom filled the entire place. SeeDs and Balamb students alike stood still to hear the announcement. Standing again, Squall listened attentively and recognised the familiar voice of Xu speaking:
"Will the following SeeDs make their way to Headmaster Cid's office immediately: Squall Leonhart, Zell Dincht, Quistis Trepe and Selphie Tilmitt. I repeat, will those students please make their way to the Headmaster's office immediately."
"Sounds urgent," Squall muttered, making his way to the school's Directory and up the flight of stairs that led to the lift. He met Quistis there and saw her raise a questioning eyebrow to which he gave a shrug and stepped into the lift.
Zell and Selphie arrived a few minutes later in the middle of a heated argument. The headmaster ushered them in line with the others and waved away their apologies, catching parts of their quarrelling. A dispute about hotdogs?? They saluted to the founder of their Garden: Cid Kramer and stood to attention.
"I'm afraid Xu has delivered the message to you my SeeDs in a rather urgent tone. I think I must have got over a little excited when I received the message from an employer who wanted to hire you. It's just that you've had so very little action since, er, the previous occasion that I began to wonder. Anyhow, I was quite surprised this morning when I was greeted with an Esthar official. Apparently the President wishes you to participate in an upcoming parade that is being held in Esthar. He wants you to keep the peace throughout event, and make sure no uncalled for outbreaks occur." Headmaster Cid said briefing them on their mission.
"I'm sorry, Sir. But I would have thought Esthar guards would handle a situation such as this." Squall spoke, not fully understanding what was being asked of them in this mission. In the missions he had been in, his role as a SeeD involved liberating of towns or cities, hijacking train carriages along with resistance groups and leading the fight against sorceresses. Now they were being hired to make sure no fighting broke out during the parade at Esthar? Squall had a feeling that there was more than what the Esthar official had told the headmaster.
"Well, the President's official did mention something about looking forward to seeing you SeeDs in particular, again. I believe you know him? Esthar's President after the Sorceress Adel? President Laguna Loire?"
"Oh, Laguna!" they all said in unison. The eventful ordeal with Ultimecia had been so long ago, how could they forget Laguna? the mysterious figure whom they had been in the 'dream world'. Ellone had that unique power to transcend space and time. A power that Ultimecia wanted to harness in order to live in the present in a time compressed state. It was Ellone who reached out to Squall to ask for his help. And Squall had been waiting so long for his beloved Sis to come back...
"It's those friggin' GF's fault!" Zell stormed in his usual way. "The more we use them, the more we forget about those memories that meant so much to us!"
"Zell, calm down," Squall instructed. Maybe it was the GF's fault. They were after all apart of them. They occupied spaces in their memories... Taking over the ones that were deeply treasured. It was the reason why all four of them were only able to remember snippets of their childhood. Why they weren't able to remember the memories spent as kids in the Orphanage where they all grew up together, and the one who had taken care of them all, Matron... Of course there was one person who remembered those childhood memories all too well.
"RAGE!" the shrill shriek of Fujin's voice rang into their ears, as Irvine stumbled into the office with a sheepish smile and with his shotgun in his hand. Squall thought he saw faint signs of smoke snaking out of the barrel, and shook his head. What had he done now?
"PAY BACK!" Fujin demanded, holding up her weapon up: a large suriken, for all to see and to see the damage Irvine had inflicted upon it.
"Sorry Fujin, Raijin said I could use it for target practice." Irvine said with a sly smile.
"WHAT?!" Fujin thundered, whipping round to confront her comrade who stood behind her.
"H-He's lying Fujin, ya know! I swear, I never-" Raijin stammered, scared to confront her ugly side once more.
"STUPID!" she said kicking him behind the legs. With what looked liked an apologetic gesture towards the headmaster; Fujin kicked Raijin once more before running back to the lift. Hastily Irvine closed the door to the office, muttered an apology and saluted.
"If you want targets for target practising, Irvine, I suggest you use the flying monsters in the training area, and not flying surikens, hmm?" Headmaster Cid suggested.
"Uh, yes Sir," Irvine said, tilting his hat with a hand.
"Good. Squall, you're leading this mission. Carry out the President's orders accordingly. Have fun at the parade, and take care of each other. You may be dismissed." Cid concluded, returning behind his desk.
With the consent from the people at Lunar Gate and Headmaster Cid, the five SeeDs were able to keep the long lost airship: the Ragnorak - having been rediscovered by Squall and Rinoa whilst floating aimlessly in space. The fine beast provided the best form of transportation there was to offer capable of moving at a good speed and allowing them access to anywhere in the world.
"Right! Esthar it is!" Selphie exclaimed, jumping into the pilot's seat. "Where will our point of landing be, Squall?"
"Make it the Airstation. The Presidential Palace is not too far from there. The Airlifts take only three passengers at a time, so we'll have to take it turns. Zell and Quistis you come with me. Selphie, Irvine you follow short. Everybody agreed?"
"Yes!"
"Make sure to junction your GF's before we land. Is anyone in need of remodelling his or her weapon? We can make a detour at the junkstore in the mall." Squall asked his group.
"I could have my weapon remodelled to the Exeter, if someone would give me two screws!" Irvine said pointedly targeting his words at Zell, who grinned back at him.
"Hey, I told you: gimme hundred gil for each of them, and they're yours. Otherwise these screws stay with me."
"Zell, you-" Irvine began, readying his shotgun.
"Irvine, stop!" Quistis ordered, pointing the gun away from Zell. "Put the gun away and cool it!"
"I'll get those screws off you," Irvine vowed, tilting his cowboy hat up.
"Yeah? Just try and get past these fists o' mine," Zell said holding up his glove-clad hands. "Y'know, that Combat King you gave me the other day, proved to very handy. Wanna be a volunteer so I can try out a new move?"
"Move you're hands any higher and they'll be perfect shooting targets!" Irvine snapped, reaching out for his gun once again.
Restraining Irvine and giving him a good talking to, Quistis then took Squall to one side and asked him about their weapons being upgraded.
"Squall? Is it really necessary to upgrade our weapons any further? Surely we're not to expect an attack in the city after all that had happened?" she said to him.
I dunno. It was just a suggestion. Look what happened when we helped an innocent resistance group. We ended up fighting a sorceress from the future!
"We should be ready for anything. A year may have past since we encountered Ultimecia, but we can't make any guarantees that a repetition similar to that will happen again." Squall said firmly."In which case, those of us who are able to remodel can go to the junkstore, later perhaps." Quistis said, and then reached out to steady herself when the Ragnorak suddenly dropped in altitude.
Everybody's attention was directed to where Selphie sat. "Sor-ry!" she sang out getting the Ragnorak back into her control. "I pulled down on the throttle to fast. I told the person at the receiving end that we're landing, so hold on!"
Disembarking the Ragnorak, Squall and his party were welcomed into Esthar by a familiar looking face dressed in Presidential Official's clothing and half a dozen Estharian soldiers.
"We are the SeeDs that President Laguna requested our services for," Squall announced, to the official who seemed to be studying them all intently.
"Isn't that...?" Quistis whispered to Squall.
"Kiros!" Zell burst out and shook the official's hand over-enthusiastically. "Remember us? I was you in the 'dream world' remember? Or was it Ward? Anyway that doesn't matter! Good to see ya again!"
"Step away from the Presidential Official," the captain of the guards commanded, at the outburst greeting Zell had given - his weapon at the ready.
"It's OK," Kiros reassured. "These SeeDs are very good friends with the President."
"Yeah, chill out man, no need to get touchy," Zell said patting the captain in the back and sauntering after the others into a Presidential car. "We know the President, ya know, uh I mean: you know!"
Laguna Loire, had once been a Galbadian soldier along with his comrades: Kiros Seagul and Ward Zaback, as well as an actor and a writer. His great ambition in life was really to become a journalist. And if he wanted to be honest to himself, Laguna preferred his pen to his machine gun any day. His pen was indeed mightier than his sword, or so the saying went. Laguna welcomed his guests openly with the usual open and colloquial language he had always used. His face had begun to show signs of age. His long hair tied back and his distinct earring. But that didn't matter. Deep down inside, he was still the same good ol' Laguna. However, all but Squall greeted him in a less friendly manner. Instead he remained subdued, and waited until all hi's and hello's were over with.
"Squall," Laguna said, saluting. "Great to see you again,"
"President," Squall replied, ever the one to do things by the book.
"Hey, there's no need for that! C'mon, call me Laguna!" the president of Esthar said. "Geez, you make me sound so old."
"You are getting on a bit, though aren't you," Zell commented with a grin.
"Now none of that," Laguna said, laughing. "I'm not that old,"
"So, President," Squall began.
"Laguna," he corrected.
"... Whatever... You're task for us. Am I to understand that our instructions are to prevent any outbreaks occurring during the course of the parade festivities?"
"Yeah. Didn't Cid brief you about the mission before you came?" Laguna asked slightly bemused.
A simple mission. Why do I still have this feeling that there's more to it than any of us really know?
Squall wondered to himself."Preparations are still being made for the parade," Laguna said, strolling over to a large window that over-looked the entire city. "Decided that a parade would help lift the mood. After all, it's been what, almost a year now? I'm sure I don't need to remind you of the events that occurred. How they affected our lives and the rest of the world."
How could any of us forget?
Squall thought looking away. He had to stop feeling sorry for himself before he totally lost it and went completely insane. Yeah, remember you've still got a job to do. So-called 'fearless leader'. Right…"Why don't you go down to the city and look around for a while?" Laguna suggested to them. "Me, Kiros and Ward will come out and find you guys later."
"Good idea, man," Zell agreed heading for the exit.
"Not so fast kung-fu boy, you've got something to give me." Irvine said following closely.
"Squall, y'gonna come with us? We're gonna go down to the mall and check things out." Selphie said, ready to leave with Quistis.
"You and Instructor Trepe go ahead. I'm gonna go speak with the President." Squall said, noting the look of worry Quistis had in her eyes. I'm here in the palace. Squall thought to himself. What could go wrong?
"You want to speak to me, Squall?" Laguna asked when he noticed it was only he that remained behind.
"Yes. I wanted to ask a few questions," Squall replied.
"Go ahead, shoot," said Laguna flopping down onto his seat behind the desk. Kiros and Ward had exited, realising that Squall wanted a one-on-one talk, minus third-wheel parties.
"Ellone," Squall began. "Is she-"
"She's fine," Laguna interrupted. "You can go and see her if you want. She's helping out in the parade. I hear you and her were close." he commented.
Were once close, Squall muttered to himself. "Yeah..." he replied a distant look in his eyes. A year hadn't changed him. He was still Squall - the lone wolf. The one who kept himself to himself unless there was something that interested him. But he had changed - even if it was for a brief while in his teenage life. Those that were close to him saw a new side to Squall Leonhart. A new Squall that had blindly left the safe confines of the getaway pod from the Lunar Gate space station, to save the one person he could honestly say he cared for. A new Squall that had rescued Rinoa from the Sorceresses Memorial, and a new Squall that had fought for love, courage and friendship.
"Hey Squall, what about that girl. What's her name? Er... Rin- Rin something," Laguna asked, racking his brains for the name.
"Rinoa," Squall supplied for him, wincing as he said the name of the person that caused the most pain to him, more than any sword wound could.
"Yeah, that's it. What happened to her?"
"She, she went away for while," Squall said and swallowed hard. "Said she had to sort herself out. The ordeal with Ultimecia - it kinda affected her."
"Mmm," Laguna said nodding. "And has she..."
"No not yet," Squall said his voice barely audible.
"Oh..." Laguna said, his voice falling flat but then brightened again. "Buck up! I had the same problem as you. Back when I was a Galbadia soldier, I fancied this person. I used to always drag Kiros and Ward with me to watch her perform at the Deling hotel in Galbadia. Then, when I finally had my chance, I blew everything."
Major bummer,
Squall thought."Her name was Julia y'know," Laguna went on. "She was a great pianist and everything,"
Is she dead or something?
Squall wondered. "What happened afterwards?""I went to war," Laguna said simply. "She said she would wait 'till I returned. I had a major crush on her. Didn't know she felt the same way."
Let me guess, you never returned. Right?
"I never returned," Laguna said, answering his thoughts. "I let her slip away..."
"Do you know where she is now?"
Laguna shrugged. "No idea. Last I heard, she got married to a general and had a daughter." he said.
"So, what about the other woman? Raine?" Squall asked.
"Don't be thinking that I didn't love her!" Laguna started as though Squall had implied so. "Understand that I loved both of them. Julia was probably my first... and last. But Raine, yeah I cared for her too. I stumbled into Winhill during my time as a soldier. I was wounded, and Raine took care of me. To show her my thanks, I patrolled the town every day. Killing monsters - protecting the people. It was the least I could do. Raine had a niece. A cute kid she was. All three of us were like a family, living in Winhill. Then we got married, but shortly after I left the town, Raine passed away..." Laguna's voice trailed away, and Squall shut his eyes tight. To lose a person like that...
Before Squall could finish his thought, the alarm signal began blaring and the light at the back of the room flashed red. Whipping round, Squall ran to the window and saw panic in the city. Soon, Kiros and Ward burst into the room. Gone were their officials clothing, and the more familiar clothes that Squall had seen them wear in the dream world. Both had their weapons with them and grim expressions on their faces.
"Laguna we have a problem," Kiros informed.
"You don't say!" Laguna replied. "What the hell's goin' on?!"
"Monsters," Kiros reported. "Somehow they broke into the city. Word is they came through the internal system - the car rental."
"How many out there?"
"Hard to say, man. But it looks like they're all headed for the mall," Kiros replied.
"This is bad," Laguna muttered, yanking one of the drawers on his desk and taking out his machine gun. "This is very, very bad. This is great y'know. There's peace for a year in the city, and then monsters come trampling along, wrecking the place. It's déjà vu all over again - resurrection of the Lunar Cry. C'mon, we've gotta get down there and sort the problem out!" Seconding that, Squall took out his gunblade - upgraded to Lion Heart and ran with the other's out into the city and in the direction of the city's mall.
Chapter Two - Old Acquaintances "... T
"Fight first! Ask questions later, Zell," Quistis instructed, casting scan on the large Ruby Red dragon before her, and then gaped at the huge monster. It's level was well over fifty - only monsters like that could only be found at the Islands closest to Heaven and Hell... Hastily casting protect on herself, Quistis prepared herself for its attack. The pupils of her blue eyes dilated to pinpricks as she could only watch her vital hit-points be beaten out of her. Collapsing onto the floor, Quistis tried her best to stay in the game, until it was her time to attack again. Where have all these monsters come from? She wondered desperately, wincing at the pain. A lot of help the Protect magic did!
The sound of gunfire and the clash of metal against flesh soon caught Quistis' fallen state. She slowly lifted her head up to see Laguna and his friends attacking a seriously mean T-Rexuar, and Squall who was fighting the Ruby Red.
"Squall..." she said faintly, a weak smile playing on her lips.
"Instructor? You OK?" Squall asked as he attacked the dragon and then cast Holy on it.
"I'll be fine..." she said half to herself and half to Squall. Slowly standing up, Quistis closed her eyes and summoned what inner strength she had left. The Ruby Red had to be defeated!
Squall had fought Ruby Red dragons before, when he set out to acquire the hidden GF Bahamut. But this dragon before him now was relentless! He knew very well that Ruby Reds were weak against Holy magic and Ice, and just now he saw a thousand hit-points be taken off the monster. It refused to be beaten! There was nothing more Squall could do until his turn. He and Laguna and his friends had hurried as quick as they could to the mall once the alarm had been triggered, and Squall had seen the blow that his Instructor had taken from the Ruby Red. He watched Quistis as she slowly stood up. A yellow-red aura began to surround her, and Squall knew what that meant.
Once somebody's hit-point level came to a critical stage, that person was able to unleash a great amount of power: a Limit Break. Whilst Squall's Limit Break consisted of the Renzokuken and at times another additional attack, Quistis' Breaks, however, had more variety in them. Her Limit Break was Blue Magic, and from there she could choose which magic she wanted to use. Over the course of the SeeDs encounter with the notorious Sorceress Ultimecia, Quistis had developed her Blue Magic Limit Break to a total of sixteen selections. Her favourite being: Degenerator. This Blue Magic attack caused death to one enemy, and although it did not work against all foes and monsters, she did however know that the Degenerator attack worked sufficiently well against Ruby Red dragons.
Squall knew this too because it was Instructor Trepe and his friend Zell, that accompanied him to the Research Missile Base when attempting to get the GF Bahamut. It was Quistis that helped them defeat the Ruby Reds that they encountered in between, before the showdown with the secret Guardian Force. Ruby Red dragon, you are history! Quistis said to herself, as Degenerator was cast upon the huge red beast. Her out-stretched palms opened up a black hole from which the monster was sucked into, disappearing into thin air. Game over for the dragon, victory to Quistis.
Once game play was over, Quistis slumped down onto the floor again. She may have defeated one mean monster, but she was still weak and in need of recovering. Zell, Selphie and Irvine rushed over to where Squall and Quistis were, once their battles were finished.
"Yo, Instructor... you OK?" Zell asked, genuine concern in voice. Although people saw Zell as a loud, boisterous and hyperactive person, he did have a side to him that people found hard to believe and did not know it existed. It was the situations and battles that they all had shared together that brought them closer than ever. It was called true friendship.
"I'll be OK, Zell," the Instructor assured, trying to stand again.
"No, Instructor. You're too weak," Selphie said, setting her back down on the floor. "Wait a sec," concentrating, the young girl - who originally came from Trabia Garden - focused her mind and cast Curaga onto Quistis. Gradually, Instructor Trepe's hit-points and health were replenished, and she gave a grateful smile to Selphie.
"Thank you," she said taking Irvine's hand to help her up.
Laguna, Kiros and Ward came and joined them when they were done fighting the T-Rexuar. Laguna had a frown on his face, which soon dissolved into nothingness once he put his machine-gun away.
"Phew! Hadn't battled in ages!" he said to them all.
"Is there something we ought to know?" Squall demanded. "For what reason did those monsters break into the city for?"
"Does it look like I know?" Laguna asked back, rather too forcefully. "Do you think I had something to do with it?"
The man had a point. "No," Squall replied quietly.
"Me, Kiros and Ward are gonna go check what happened, and what went wrong."
Laguna said to them all. "I'm sorry Squall if you think that I ordered you here under false pretences. I heard that you guys had been out of action for a while, and thought that this job would get you up and about again. I wanted to secure you SeeDs for this event in case someone did beat me to it. Besides, the parade doesn't begin until tomorrow afternoon. You're free to leave Esthar whenever, I wanted the preliminaries out of the way you see."
"Don't you want us to stick around? Help you find out what let those monsters loose into the city?" Zell asked. "We're under your instructions y'know."
"I'm instructing you guys to get some time out. This was meant to be a field trip for all of you. No action and all play. I dunno where the hell those monsters came from, but me, Kiros and Ward'll find out. I don't want the parade to be a reminder of last year." Laguna said.
"You suggested so, OK?" Selphie said.
"So long as your back in time for the festivities." Laguna said with a grin. "Go on. Scram."
"Ooh, y'know what would be great?" Selphie said, as they all boarded back into the Ragnorak. "We could visit Matron again, couldn't we? Despite Ultimecia's plan to turn Edea against us SeeDs, she's still out Matron who had taken care of us when we were still kids at the Orphanage."
"Yeah, that'd be cool," Zell agreed. "What do ya say Squall?"
"Whatever..." he said, lapsing into thinking mode again.
"Hey, Squall. Try adding some enthusiasm, huh?" Irvine cajoled. "We're all together again, c'mon!"
"Yeah, Squall," Selphie joined in.
"Fine. Set a course for the Orphanage," Squall absently instructed and then left the bridge to do some thinking.
"Selphie, Irvine? You'll be OK up here right?" Quistis asked when Squall left. As an instructor, she had every right to be concerned and to worry about her students, even if they were SeeDs!
"Sure!" Selphie assured, jumping into the pilot seat once more.
"Yeah, we'll be fine. I'll be here with her," Irvine said nudging his hat up, revealing a smile.
There's a double meaning in that...
Quistis thought and then motioned to Zell to some with her. "I know you and Squall are the best of friends," she began, as the elevator slowly descended. "I know that for a fact,""I dunno..." Zell said, scratching the back of his head with a frown. "Squall's kinda hard to read, if y'know what I mean. The first positive sign he ever showed of caring was when he helped me out, back when we were trapped in the D-district prison, remember? Two G-soldiers came and attacked me, and then Squall jumped in and saved the day. You then said something about Squall caring so much about his friends, and I was like hugging him for waay too long-"
"Zell, I remember," Quistis said, resting a hand on his shoulder.
"After Rinoa left, Squall shut-up like a clam again. Back to I-never-smile-at-all Squall," Zell concluded. "He may come to me for a guy-to-guy talk, but what good am I if he doesn't want to open his mouth, and only say 'whatever' if he can't say anything else!"
"I'm only asking you to try, Zell," Quistis said gently. "I'm sure you'll do better finding out what's on his mind than I will."
"Fine. But I can't promise anything," Zell said reluctantly.
Squall had escaped to the lower deck of the flying craft, and into one of the small rooms where he and Rinoa had fought the different coloured alien propagators. Geez, the whole Ragnorak reminded him of Rinoa. The very person he wanted to rid his mind of. Her memory was too painful for him that it hurt. Badly. Sighing, Squall sank to the floor and brooded miserably in silence. Perhaps they should visit Timber and see how she was doing. That's dumb. If she hasn't returned after a whole year, what makes you think she ever will? Will a little side trip ease the pain of not seeing her face for so long? No. Exactly.
His mind began to wander back to the past. The Orphanage where he grew up with all his friends, and Sis... Ellone. Things were so different now. All of them were grown-up. How could Squall ever come running to his beloved Sis when he was feeling down and out? Things had changed. He had changed. From Squall the Garden cadet and lone wolf, to SeeD, to caring and compassionate Squall, back to the quiet and often too depressing mercenary. Rinoa... Why did you have to go? Why haven't you returned? I need you... It was stupid really. Even after he had blindly cast himself into outer space and rescued the girl he cared for, he still refused to show his feelings. "Thank-you for rescuing me, again Squall", was what she had said. "Whatever... I did what I wanted to do", was what his reply was - typical unchanging Squall.
What was the tune to that song again? Squall remembered hearing it on a side-trip to Shumi Village in the frozen wastelands near Trabia Garden. He also recalled hearing the tune elsewhere, on a piano... Yes! When he was Laguna in the dream world. Squall remembered now. When Laguna and his friends were serving as Galbadian soldiers. He used to... "I used to always drag Kiros and Ward with me to watch her perform at the Deling hotel in Galbadia. Then, when I finally had my chance, I blew everything."
The piano composition was memorable. Julia... had thought up lyrics to match the melody. She had titled the song: Eyes on Me... Whenever sang my songs, on the stage on my own. Whenever sad my words, wishing they would be heard. I saw you smiling at me, was it real or just my fantasy? You'd always be there in the corner, of this tiny little bar... It all made perfect sense. Julia's love for Laguna-
"Squall?" the unusual uncertainty in Zell's voice was enough to startle Squall out of his 'quiet thinking'. Squall did not bother to raise his head, but saw from the corner of his eye, the mean whip that hung from Quistis' waist. Instructor Trepe looking out for me, as always. It's not like I can't handle all these emotion I'm feeling... What? Who am I kidding?
Unlike Zell, Quistis dared not venture any further than the room's entrance. She couldn't help but care for her students. Being an instructor, it was her nature to worry. Instead she remained where she was and kept quiet, allowing Zell to do what he could.
"Squall?" Zell ventured further.
"Yeah?" came a reply that lacked invitation.
"What's up?"
"Nothing much," Squall said. Why couldn't he be left alone to think? Maybe because I'll drown myself in all my sorrows.
"I'll bet you'll be glad to see Matron again,"
Sure, thrilled to bits.
"Y'know, we should have taken Ellone with us. When we were kids you always kept her to yourself. Like your life depended on it."
My life
did depend on her. Nobody came close to caring for me since I became an orphan. Then when she left, and never returned... It was happening again. The moment he became close to someone he cared for, they were taken away from him. Just like Rinoa."How are you coping without Rinoa?" the question drew an intake of breath from the doorway. Quistis stared at Zell with her blue eyes. Zell turned and shrugged at her. It was a reasonable question wasn't it? No good playing around in circles, it was better if things were cut to the chase.
Hmm, let me think about that,
Squall thought sarcastically to himself. Well... seeing that I can't stop thinking about her, since I'm practically surrounded with memories of Rinoa, I guess I'll live. For a while."Squall, you're being stupid!" Quistis stormed impatiently. She could see from where she was standing that Squall was never going to open up. Zell turned to his instructor again with a questioning look. I thought I was going to handle this? His face seemed to say. "You're being totally irrational. We're your friends for goodness sake. Ifrit only knows how many times I told you that. How can we help you if you won't tell us what's troubling you."
"I don't need your help," Squall said, trying his best not to lash out. He stood and made for the doorway but stopped when he saw his instructor blocking the only way out a determined look on her face.
"Do you think tearing your soul apart with memories of Rinoa is going to help?" she demanded. Her voice, sounding equably as sharp as the crack of her own weapon. "Well?" To that, Squall gave no reply. He had none. Instructor Trepe was right; he was opting for the easy way out - at times, not the best option to take. "Zell," the commanding tone still in her voice. "Return to the bridge and inform Selphie that we are changing course."
This information caught Squall's attention; he whipped his head up and stared at his superior. Quistis returned the stare with her ice blue eyes. She trained her eyes on his, her gaze never faltering as she said the words he did not want to hear. "Tell her to set co-ordinates for Timber. We're going to pay a little visit."
Zell glanced from Squall to Quistis, wondering whom he should take orders from. He jumped to his feet when Quistis sharply told him to get a move on.
"I'm going, I'm going. Sheesh!" Squall heard Zell say as he edged himself out of the room and back up to the bridge.
Shrugging, Squall sat back down onto the cool metal floor of the Ragnorak. So what if they were going to Timber? It wasn't going bring Rinoa back to him. She would have returned long ago if she had wanted to. But she hadn't, which meant what exactly?
"Don't deny that you're hurting inside Squall. Rinoa is leading you to ruin." the subtle tone of her voice returning. "If your closest friends can't help you, and you can't, then who will?"
Ellone?
Squall suggested. Even with her unique ability, what could she do? Remove her power and she's just ordinary, human Ellone. Am I destined to be forever haunted by Rinoa and her memories? - What am I saying?! Rinoa's still alive. Get a GRIP Squall!!"Remember Squall, whatever you decide to do it's your decision. Just, just don't do anything that you'll regret later, OK?" With a little sigh, the child prodigy - having qualified to be a SeeD instructor at the age of eighteen, she was nineteen now - left Squall on his own to return back to the bridge. Once she was gone, solitude crept into the room to keep Squall company. He could feel the Ragnorak changing direction and began to seriously contemplate whether seeing Rinoa again was a good idea. And most importantly, what was he going to say when they got there?
